


it's been a long day without you (the love will never get lost)

by blackrose1002, BlackVultures



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Car Chases, Crying, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fake Character Death, First Kiss, Fix-It, Grief/Mourning, Guilt, Guns, Heartbreak, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Lost Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Mystery, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Presumed Dead, Reunions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 11:13:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 27,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28919622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackrose1002/pseuds/blackrose1002, https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackVultures/pseuds/BlackVultures
Summary: His mind flashed to their last manniversary, their kidnapping, and how they had come up with a plan to get out. Mac still remembered how it had felt to look at Jack's supposedly lifeless body, he had had nightmares about it for weeks, even though Jack had beenfine, joking that the next time they would have faked Mac's death instead...Mac sat up ramrod straight in bed, his breathing quickening and his pulse hammering so hard it hurt. "Oh my god," he said, and then he flung himself out of bed and groped on the floor for his jeans. "Oh mygod, Jack, you're a fuckinggenius."(Jack dies. Or... does he? 5x05 fix-it)
Relationships: Jack Dalton/Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), James MacGyver/Matilda "Matty" Webber
Comments: 103
Kudos: 160





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> As promised, we come to you with a 5x05 fix-it fic! Obviously, our headcanon is that Jack is perfectly fine - he faked his death for a very important reason, no doubt about that. But to make this time easier for everyone, Sammy and I decided to write a fic exploring that headcanon.
> 
> Small warning - the fic kind of... got away from us and is now writing itself. Yes, the fic is still in progress, and while we usually wouldn't post it until it was done, we wanted to give you the first chapter as soon as possible. Yes, you read that right! It's a multichapter fic and we have no clue how long it's going to be - we're still writing it!
> 
> Anyway, we really hope you enjoy it, and like I said - Jack's alive. He's just fine ♥
> 
> Title is from the song "See You Again" by Charlie Puth and Wiz Khalifa.
> 
> K. ♥

Angus MacGyver was no stranger to death, and as morbid as that sounded it was unfortunately true. He had lost many people in his life - his mom, his grandfather, Peña, Charlie, his aunt Gwen, he had even almost lost his dad - and every time he had managed to get back up to his feet. The periods of grief had varied, but eventually he had _always_ made it through.

Until now.

This... this was too much. The bruises on his knuckles from punching the sink in Russ's plane attested to that, a dark, angry purple mottling that he couldn't help but feel like he deserved, no matter what everybody kept telling him. That was the one moment of vulnerability he had allowed himself because he still had had so much to do, and now that they had caught Kovacs and he had handed off the GTO to Riley, he... didn't know what to do.

He locked the door behind him and took a few steps in the direction of the living room, but then his knees... just gave out, so he leaned against the wall and slid down until he was sitting on the floor. The house was completely quiet around him and he tried taking a deep breath, but instead let out a sob instead. He immediately swallowed hard, trying to get it together, but... why? Why should he do that? There was no one around, he was completely alone, and... Jack was gone.

Jack was dead.

 _Jack was dead_. The thought felt inherently wrong somehow and Mac flinched away from it, curling in on himself. A sob ripped from his throat, painfully raw, and he slammed his head back against the wall. It wasn't fair that Kovacs was still breathing and Jack was gone from the world, the last moment of his life one of agony and betrayal.

If Mac had been there... maybe things would have ended differently. They would have been together, Jack would have had at least one person he could have trusted unconditionally by his side, and maybe they would have figured this all out.

Together.

Because they had always worked best when they were together and Mac would never forgive himself for forgetting about this for a moment and running away to Nigeria because that... that had been the biggest mistake of his life, one that had cost him Jack.

"You're such a fucking _moron_!" Mac shouted at himself, sobbing again as he fisted both his hands in his hair and yanked hard. His eyes were squeezed shut and tears flowed freely down his cheeks, and for a moment he was entirely consumed by despair. He scrambled up and headed to the guest room, which was consumed by Jack's worldly possessions... and he started digging around for a gun.

There were so many boxes, but he searched through them frantically, his hands shaking so violently he could barely grasp anything. "Come on, where is it," he choked out, stumbling over to another box, letting out another sob. Tears were blurring his vision, but he didn't care, blindly pushing things around in the box. "Come on!"

When he couldn't find what he was looking for he kicked the box as hard as he could, sending DVDs and CDs flying all over the floor. Some cassette tapes joined them but Mac didn't care, kicking another box and unending a bunch of t-shirts. "You fucking bastard! Where did you put them?" He slammed through more of Jack's things until he finally, mercifully, came across one of his gun cases.

It was on the floor in the corner of the room and Mac dropped to his knees, reaching for the case with trembling hands. They hovered above the case for a moment before Mac reached for the clasps, somehow managing to get them open, and then he slowly lifted the lid, revealing one of Jack's beloved guns.

It was a Heckler & Koch VP9, shiny and new, probably not even used by Jack before he had left. He popped out the magazine and groaned when he saw it was empty... then he realized what he was doing and dropped the gun like it had bit him. He couldn't _shoot himself_ , Riley needed him, and even if she didn't, Mac wanted this to hurt. He needed to experience this, because he deserved every ounce of suffering he had coming.

He sniffled and made another choked sound, looking at the gun for a moment before slowly picking it up. He put it back in the case, gently, and he brushed his fingers over it, almost like he was petting it. Jack had gotten this gun, he had _chosen_ it, so Mac was going to take care of it and all the others forever.

He wiped the tears and snot off his face with the sleeve of his shirt and pushed himself to his feet. Then he forced himself to go around and pick up everything he had mistreated. Luckily nothing was broken, and once it was all organized he left the room, closing the door behind him. Taking a deep breath, he decided he might as well be miserable in bed, so he started stripping off his clothes on the walk down the hall.

He stepped into his bedroom and didn't bother turning the lights on. He and Riley had spent hours driving around in the GTO, and he hadn't even realized it was so late. It wasn't completely dark outside just yet, but he was mentally exhausted after the last few days, and even though he wasn't looking forward to lying alone in an cold and empty bed... misery was what he deserved.

He dug around in his dresser until he came up with one of Jack's t-shirts - Iron Maiden, worn and faded, no longer carrying the scent of its owner. He had had it in with his things since Jack had left, and Desi had never called him out on wearing it to bed when she would have stayed over. That wouldn't be happening anymore, since Mac had broken things off with her for good when they had gotten home from Croatia, and for a second he missed the idea of sharing his bed with her so badly it hurt. Not because he had any romantic feelings left for Desi, but because she had made things... bearable, as bad as that probably sounded.

Now that he thought about it, it sounded _awful_ which was yet another proof that he and Desi had never been right for each other. Getting back together for the second time had been a mistake, not to mention getting back together for the third time not that long ago, but at least now Mac was certain things between them were over for good.

He pushed off his jeans and tossed them... somewhere before getting on the bed and crawling under the covers, blinking away the tears when he touched Jack's dog tags where they were resting on his chest, the soft material of Jack's t-shirt between the metal and his fingertips.

Letting out a shuddering sigh, Mac slipped his hand underneath the shirt. He held the dog tags gingerly between his fingers and thumb, rubbing the pad of his thumb along the raised lettering. Mac had a pair of dog tags just like this somewhere, and absently he wondered who would have received them if he had died - probably his dad.

"I'm sorry I called you a bastard," he said to the ceiling, hardly recognizing his own voice. "You're... not. I'm just... so _sad,_ Jack."

He exhaled shakily, knowing he was being stupid... but this was all he had left. "I miss you so much," he whispered, briefly closing his eyes. "I've missed you since the day you left and... I'm so sorry. I should've pushed more, I should've come with you... or I just should've followed you." He swallowed hard. "We should've been together on that mission and you..." He choked out another sob. "What happened to _if you go kaboom I go kaboom_? I thought it was supposed to work both ways."

He blinked away more tears and cracked a morbid smile before adding, "I have to admit, I didn't think you'd be so literal about it." He licked his dry lips, knowing he should have drunk some water, had something to eat... but he didn't care enough to make the effort. "All of your clues were so clever... I always told you that you were just as smart as me. The postcard almost gave me a heart attack."

He wiped his cheeks with one hand, but the tears kept falling. "Seeing your handwriting, your alias... for a second I let myself believe it was you who sent it." He chuckled bitterly. "It was... so smart what you did. And then the apartment and the Cairo clue... you planned it all so well." He smiled thinly. "I quoted Die Hard right before taking down that bitch. You'd be proud."

Mac went quiet for a moment, thumb rubbing over the letters again. He was intimately familiar with them now, so much so that he would know them if he were blind.

 _Dalton, Jack S., 337D809164, O NEG, CHRISTIAN_.

"At least I hope you would be," he continued, the base of his addled brain tingling, the way it always did when he found a problem to solve. "I've done a lot of bad things since you left. I'm not the same."

"It's... it's such a long story, but I promise I will tell you," he whispered after a moment. "I'm hoping you would understand, you... you always got me in a way no one else ever did. I hope you... I hope you knew how much you meant to me." His heart cracked. "Well, you didn't know the whole truth, no one does."

He had never spoken these words aloud, but they had lived deep in his heart for years now. "I love you, Jack," he said, his voice weak, but full of conviction. "I love you so much. And that's never going to change. You... you might not be here anymore, but... you're so important to me. I wish I hadn't been so scared to tell you."

"I... I don't know how you would've reacted, but... that doesn't really matter right now," he continued after a few seconds, his voice still just a whisper. "To be clear, I don't mean that like a... like a brother, or a son, or whatever. I... I _love_ you. I have for so many years and... I honestly don't see myself ever loving anyone else like that."

Something loosened in his chest, and he felt... lighter, somehow, having admitted how he felt, even if it was too late for it to mean anything. "That's part of why my relationship with Dez didn't work," he continued, that tingle at the base of his brain spreading. Unconsciously he started picking apart the mission, almost like it had been any other one. "I was hung up on you, and... I think she might suspect that. She never said anything, but... well, we're not exactly going to be talking anytime soon."

He sighed deeply and rolled on his side, curling up in a small ball. "I kind of... told her that I'm done with our relationship, for good this time, and... I might've walked away?" He winced. "Not cool, but I'm tired and sad, and... I didn't have any energy left to keep up that... lie, I guess. That's what it was, in the end."

Mac went quiet again, and he wondered absently if this was what prayer felt like, for people who believed in that sort of thing. Talking to something you couldn't see and hoping that would absolve you of your sins.

"I liked that guy you made friends with," he murmured, blinking away the burn of fresh tears. "He was funny, even if he was a pain in the ass. And he helped us get to Kovacs... eventually."

He slowly felt the exhaustion catching up with him, but he forced himself to keep his eyes open, knowing that if he fell asleep, he would have to wake up in the morning, start a new day... and for now he just wanted to talk to Jack.

"He told us about selling the cell phones, you two working together." He snorted a little because he could imagine Jack losing his mind while spending time with that guy. "It took him a while, but eventually he mentioned you told him to remind me of our manniversary. That was a bit tricky, I'll give you that... but I figured it out."

He stared at the wall for a moment, blinking once, twice... because... he _had_ figured it out, right? "Wait," he said, the word seeming to drip from his mouth like honey, time slowing and warping around him. "You... you meant what I think you meant, right? Because if you didn't..."

He blinked again, suddenly feeling like he couldn't breathe. "No, you... you did. Thanks to that I figured out there's no Kovacs as a person, that it's an... online identity. That's what you meant, it had to be." His mind flashed to their last manniversary, their kidnapping, and how they had come up with a plan to get out. Mac still remembered how it had felt to look at Jack's supposedly lifeless body, he had had nightmares about it for weeks, even though Jack had been _fine,_ joking that the next time they would have faked Mac's death instead...

Mac sat up ramrod straight in bed, his breathing quickening and his pulse hammering so hard it hurt. "Oh my god," he said, and then he flung himself out of bed and groped on the floor for his jeans. "Oh my _god,_ Jack, you're a fucking _genius_." He yanked his pants back on and flied through the house, grabbing the first set of car keys he encountered along with Jack's old leather jacket. His thoughts were a blur, but they kept circling back to one thing: he had never seen the body in that coffin.

In his frenzied state it was a miracle he managed to put on his boots, and grab his phone and keys to the house, but then he ran outside, quickly locking up the door. He absently realized it was the middle of the night, but it didn't matter, nothing mattered except for finding out the truth. One glance at the car keys told him he had grabbed the keys to the Cobra - Jack's other car, blue and gorgeous, one that he had left for Mac in his will.

It was parked under the basketball hoop in Mac's driveway, a tarp covering the flawless paint job. He yanked the canvas away and got in, starting up the big engine and throwing it into reverse. He hadn't driven it since they day they had brought all of Jack's things over after clearing out his apartment, but with the way the car maneuvered it almost seemed like it remembered him. He held the wheel with one hand and tried calling Riley with the other, but it went straight to voicemail - her phone must have been off for the night.

Usually she didn't turn it off, but Mac wasn't surprised she had done it - she probably hadn't wanted anyone to bother her while she was grieving. Swallowing hard, Mac realized that if he was wrong he... he was going to break her heart all over again, crush it even, but he couldn't do this on his own.

He needed access to the body, and for that he needed to get into the funeral home, and... he _needed_ Riley.

He slammed on the brakes at a red light, only because there was some oncoming traffic and getting in an accident right now would only make things harder. The hand that wasn't on the wheel automatically went to Jack's dog tags around his throat, almost like an old-fashioned lady clutching at her pearls... and that was when something else occurred to Mac.

"You son of a bitch," he said, yanking the tags over his head to look at them in the feeble light from the street lamps. "You _motherfucker._ "

He stared at them for a moment, wondering how he could have been so stupid.

 _Dalton, Jack S., 337D809164, O NEG, CHRISTIAN_.

"Your middle name is Wyatt," Mac murmured, brushing his thumb over Jack's name. "S? What the fuck does that mean?" The light changed to green, so he tossed the tags on the passenger seat and speeded away, his mind spinning. "What are you trying to tell me?"

He didn't get a response, obviously, but there was _something_ here, he could feel it in his bones. He pushed down hard on the gas and blew the next two red lights he sees, finally screeching to a halt in front of Riley's apartment building and most likely pissing off her neighbors with the noise.

He grabbed the dog tags from the passenger seat and jogged to the door, holding down her buzzer with his thumb, praying that she would actually get up and answer it instead of writing off her late night visitor as a psychopath.

"Come on, Riles," he muttered under his breath when she didn't answer, and he held down the buzzer again, longer this time. "Come on."

It felt like eternity, but eventually he heard the intercom click, followed by a very annoyed voice, "Who the fuck is this?"

"Riles, it's me," Mac said, his heart pounding. "I'm so sorry, but please, you've gotta let me in-"

The lock on the door clicked open and Mac hurled himself through it, opting to take the stairs instead of the elevator to the third floor. By the time he reached Riley's door he was panting and was coated in a light sheen of sweat, but before he could knock she opened it.

"Mac, what the hell?" she demanded, her eyes red and puffy from crying, a big black t-shirt serving as her pajamas. "Why are you here?"

He stumbled through the door, not wanting to make a scene outside, and he started pacing, tugging at his hair. "I... I think I figured something out," he said, words tumbling out of his mouth. "But I... I don't know, but it... it doesn't make any sense, and I hate that I don't have any proof, but I need your help-"

"Mac, hey," Riley interjected, her hands landing on his shoulders and squeezing. "Slow down, okay? I can barely understand you. Whatever it is, we can figure it out." She looked at him earnestly and Mac suddenly felt nauseous, because what if he was wrong? "Just... start from the beginning, okay? What are we dealing with, exactly?"

"I shouldn't have come here," he whispered, feeling like the worst kind of asshole. He should have tried to get into the funeral home alone, gotten some proof, instead of getting Riley's hopes up. "I'm- I'm sorry, I'll go."

He tried to walk past her, but she gripped his shoulders, not letting him go. "Do you think I'm actually going to let you leave?" she asked incredulously. "What's going on, Mac?"

"I think Jack might have faked his death," Mac blurted out, hating the way Riley's expression went slack with shock, her hands dropping from his shoulders. He grabbed them with his own, not wanting her to back away. "Riley, please, listen to me... I might have misinterpreted the clue about the manniversary. The last thing Jack said to me before we left that bunker was that next time we were faking my death, not his."

Riley didn't say anything, staring at him with wide eyes that were also filling with tears. "And then, when I was driving here, I realized something else," Mac kept talking, unable to stop. "Something didn't sit right with me, but I was... I was too torn up to notice, but look." He yanked the tags out of his pocket, showing them to Riley. "Dalton, Jack S.? His middle name is Wyatt."

Riley took the dog tags from Mac with shaking fingers, holding them up to see for herself. "These... don't look right," she said, clearing her throat and obviously trying to keep her shit together. "It isn't just the S... if he'd been in an explosion with these, wouldn't they be more damaged?"

"They're meant to withstand almost anything, so not necessarily," Mac said, shaking his head. Relief coursed through him, so much he was almost weak with it, because she didn't think he was crazy. He squinted at the tags again. "But now that I think about it... the S even looks different from the other letters. Like it was stamped in by hand."

"But... but _why_?" Riley asked, her voice breaking as a few tears rolled down her cheeks. "If... if this is true and he's... alive-" that last word came out as a sob, and Mac's heart broke, "- why would he do this?"

"I don't know," Mac replied hoarsely, swallowing hard. "And I'm... I'm sorry I don't have more, I hate to get your hopes up like this, but... I need your help. And I figured you'd be the only one who wouldn't think I'm insane."

Riley stared down at the tags for a moment, then held them out to Mac, and for a second he thought she was rejecting him until she spoke. "You're not insane, Mac. What do you need?"

" _We_ need to go to the funeral home," Mac said after a beat, taking the tags and putting them back around his neck. Right now they were his only connection to Jack, so they weren't going anywhere. "I need to see inside that casket, and you need to hack their computers and get to the records that got sent over with... with the body."

Riley took a deep breath and exhaled shakily, visibly getting herself together, wringing her fingers just like Mac often did. "Okay," she eventually said, her voice sounding more steady. "It's a funeral home, I doubt their security is very advanced." She walked to the living room, Mac right behind her, and they sat on the couch together, Riley's ring on her lap. "Alright. I can do this, this is easy."

"Riles, hey," Mac said gently, putting his hand on her arm. "Deep breath, okay? You _can_ do this. There's nobody else I would trust."

Riley smiled gratefully and nodded, exhaling hard before her fingers started moving. "Okay, they _do_ store their info in the cloud, which is good - I was afraid they were old fashioned."

"Well, we need to break in there anyway," Mac muttered. "But yeah, that's one thing less for us to search for once we're there."

Riley gave him a look, but she her fingers kept dancing on the keyboard, faltering a little a moment later. "Okay, I... I found Jack's file," she said softly. "There are... medical records attached, that makes it easier. It says... the body was burned beyond recognition, but DNA analysis of the hair found on it confirmed it's Jack."

Mac's brows furrowed. "But... that doesn't make any sense. If the body was burned so badly that they couldn't make a facial idea, how could there have been hair with intact follicles for DNA?"

"He planted it," Riley said slowly, blinking as she looked away from the screen. "He could've done that, right? And then they wouldn't have checked the dental records?"

"Yeah, they wouldn't have," Mac repeated, his heart pounding wildly. "Why bother? They had all the confirmation they needed." He swallowed hard. "Riles, we need to get in there. I know it's the middle of the night, but-"

"We're going," Riley interjected, looking at him with wide eyes. "But... what are we going to do once we're there?"

"Our own tests," Mac replied after a moment, his brain working overtime. "We need solid proof before we even consider telling the others."

Riley got up and handed him her rig. "I'll be right back, let me go change." She paused, raising an eyebrow as she noticed his outfit for the first time. "Nice shirt."

"You're one to talk," Mac mumbled, but she was already gone. That left him staring at the documents on her computer screen, and he chewed on the inside of his cheek. "What are you trying to tell us, Jack?"

He didn't get a response, but he hadn't expected one, obviously. He knew it wasn't smart to get his or Riley's hopes up, but there was no denying that _something_ was going on, that something was not right.

Riley came back a moment later, wearing the same outfit she had been wearing when they had been riding around in the GTO. "Let's go," she said, grabbing her backpack and packing up the computer once Mac handed it to her. "You drove here?"

"No, I flew," was Mac's automatically sarcastic response, and he smiled when she snorted. "Yeah, I took the Cobra."

Riley quirked a brow as she locked her door behind them and they speed-walked to the stairs. "Was that a subconscious choice? Or did you do it on purpose?"

"I grabbed the first car keys I could find," Mac admitted as they started jogging down the stairs. "I realized they were for the Cobra once I was already outside."

Riley smiled at him and once again Mac felt a little lighter now that he knew she believed him and didn't think he had lost his mind. They ran out of the building and headed for the Cobra, jumping inside, and Mac started the engine right away, not wanting to waste any time.

Riley directed him to the funeral home, since Mac had never gone there from this direction before. They had picked out the place that would have handled Jack's remains - or what they had thought were Jack's remains - together, and Mac hadn't been back here since the day they had finalized details for Jack's headstone.

In the middle of the night the stately old manor was quiet and dark, and Mac killed the engine in the parking lot. "This is my first time breaking into a funeral home," he commented as they got out and looked at the building. "Can't be that hard, right?"

"Hopefully not," Riley said, standing next to him and tilting her head. "I'll say what I did back at my place, it's a funeral home. How much of security can they have?"

"I don't think people break in here on a regular basis," Mac pointed out, trying to come up with some kind of a plan. "So hopefully it's not very sophisticated."

"I don't see any cameras, except maybe by the front door," Riley observed, craning her head. "Let's try the back door, where the hearses go in and out. Might be easier."

"Good idea," Mac said, once again relieved she was on his side. They hustled around the back of the building, which was more utilitarian than the front, and next to the big garage door for the hearses was an entry door with a simple lock.

"No cameras here," Riley commented, standing next to Mac and keeping watch while he picked the lock. It only took a moment for it to click open, and Mac stood up from the crouch, carefully trying the knob. The door opened quietly, but Mac still waited for a few seconds before stepping inside, just in case someone was there.

He listened closely once they were both through the door and it shut behind them, then he flipped on the light. "No wires for a silent alarm," he noted, breathing a sigh of relief. "I think we're good. And since we aren't interested in the part the customers see, we don't have to worry about staying away from windows."

They walked through the garage and into the back of the funeral home, which was where the bodies were prepared for their final destinations - whether that was a wake or a crematory was up to the next of kin. There were three caskets sitting on rolling tables, but only one had the no-nonsense exterior that belonged to the military. "Riles... unsealing this thing isn't going to be pretty. You don't need to watch."

Riley chewed on her lower lip, but then she shook her head. "No, I'm... I'm staying," she replied, a determined look on her face. "You could need some help."

Mac knew better than to argue with her, so he nodded, slowly walking up to the coffin. "You know, if he's actually alive, I'm going to punch him once we find him," he commented, reaching for the coffin. "We _broke into a funeral home_."

Riley let out a slightly hysterical laugh. "Yeah, we did. And you punched a sink." When Mac shot her an incredulous look, she rolled her eyes. "Did you really think I slept through that? You came back and your hand was purple, I didn't think it was from jerking off."

It was Mac's turn to laugh with a knife's edge of hysteria as he pried open the latches on the coffin. This was the easy part - breaking the seal would be difficult. "Hey, can you find me something flat and long? Normally I'd ask for a pry bar, but I doubt they keep those hanging around here."

"Probably not," Riley muttered, setting her backpack on the floor. While she was busy searching Mac closed his eyes, not really that surprised she figured out he had broken down in the jet bathroom, but it still caught him off guard. He opened his eyes a moment later, staring at the coffin in front of him, the anticipation almost making him shake.

"Mac," Riley said softly, making him jump, and Mac suddenly had no idea how long he had stood there looking vacantly at the box in front of him. "I went back to the garage. Look what they had."

It was an honest-to-god pry bar, and Mac would have smiled at the irony if he hadn't been so damn tense. He took it from her and put the curved edge under the lid. "Okay, here we go."

He didn't want to do too much damage, but when he tried to be careful the lid didn't budge. He sighed and exchanged a look with Riley before he put more pressure on the bar, gripping it tightly... and suddenly the seal broke and Mac stumbled a little when he managed to get the coffin open.

The smell that burst forth was... _horrible_ to say the least, curdling Mac's stomach and making him gag. It was the reek of death mixed with burned flesh and rot, which would have sent him into an Afghanistan flashback if he hadn't been so busy trying not to vomit. Beside him Riley had gone white as a sheet, her face contorting, and she ran to a nearby sink to throw up.

"You can go, Riles," Mac choked out, grabbing Jack's jacket and pulling it up to cover his mouth and nose. It didn't help a lot, but it was something, and deciding he needed to get it over with as quickly as possible, he pushed the lid all the way up, revealing a burned body inside the coffin.

A whimper escaped Mac's throat, he couldn't help it, because even if this _wasn't_ Jack, the poor nameless bastard hadn't deserved to die like this. "Teeth," Riley wheezed, coming to stand next to him even as she gagged again, yanking the hem of her shirt up over her face. "Check the teeth. Jack has a fake molar, in the back on the left."

Mac made a face as he reached for the man's head, but then he stepped back. "I need gloves," he mumbled, spotting some on a table nearby. He quickly put them on and went back to the coffin, realizing his needed both hands for this, so he wouldn't be able to hold the jacket up to cover his mouth and nose. "I'm going to kill him," he muttered, reaching for the man's mouth. "I'm fucking going to kill him."

Riley stood behind him and looped an arm around his chest, pulling his jacket back up for him. "Not if I get to him first. This is fucking disgusting."

"Maybe we could team up," Mac suggested, grateful for her help. He pried open the dead man's mouth and peered inside, but it was impossible to tell by sight... so he stuck an index finger in his mouth, blinking when he realized what he felt. "Riley... all these teeth are real. No implants."

Riley's breath hitched and she fisted her other hand in the back of his jacket. "Are you- are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Mac confirmed, checking again and again, needing to be a hundred percent sure, zero doubt. "Yeah, they're... they're all real, Riley."

"Oh my god," Riley choked out, clinging to him even more. "It's- it's not Jack."

Mac took off one glove with his teeth and pulled out his phone, taking several pictures of the inside of the dead man's mouth. "Jack..." He trailed off, clearing his throat, needing to speak but overcome with emotion. "Jack broke his back during the Battle of Mogadishu, he... he told me the story once when we got drunk together. He had two vertebrae fused together. If you help me roll this guy over we can check... and that's more proof."

"Yeah, yeah, okay," Riley said, nodding frantically. "Let me just put on the gloves." She let him go and even though his mouth and nose weren't covered anymore, Mac barely noticed. Riley was back a few seconds later, so Mac put his phone away, tugging the glove on, and together they rolled the body over.

That let out a whole new explosion of stink, and Mac pushed aside what was left of the man's tactical clothing to get to his back. He started where the neck met the head and counted down, ignoring the way his fingertips pushed into the man's shredded and charred flesh. "Twenty four," he said when he reached the base of the spine. "No fusions... Jack only has twenty three."

"It's really not him," Riley whispered, and they gently rolled the man on his back again. Mac reached for the lid and closed the coffin, moving in a daze, trying to keep himself together. They took off the gloves and tossed them in the trash, and then Mac gasped when Riley threw herself on him, arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

He hugged her back, of course, burying his face in her hair and closing his eyes. "Now what? I... I didn't think we'd get this far, if I'm being honest."

"Now we call an emergency meeting at the Phoenix," Riley said, pulling back to look at him. "Because we know Jack isn't dead, but we still don't know where to start looking for him."

Mac swallowed hard, nodding a little, even though he was still a little afraid of the others not believing them. "I know it's stupid, and that we have proof, but... a part of me worries about them thinking I'm... _we're_ crazy."

Riley gave him a sad smile. "Because of what happened with Codex?" He nodded and she hugged him again. "You said it yourself, we have proof. That body here... that's not Jack."

"And these aren't Jack's either," Mac said, tugging the dog tags off again to look at them. "What do you think the S means, though?"

Riley studied the tags, then her gaze snapped up to his face and she breathed out, "Senior." She punched his shoulder. "Mac, Jack S. stands for Senior!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there!
> 
> First of all, thank you all SO MUCH for all the amazing comments on the first chapter of this fic! They made us super happy ♥
> 
> We hope you like the second chapter :)

Mac's eyes widened and he took a closer look at the tags. "You're right," he whispered. "These... these _are_ Jack's tags, but somehow he managed to put the S over the W. Because he knew it would make one of us think of his dad." He inhaled sharply. "Riley, the cemetery. Maybe... maybe there's a clue near Senior's grave?"

"We should go there first," Riley said, tugging at Mac's jacket. "Come on, let's get out of here." They made sure everything was more or less as it had been before ducking outside, making sure the door locked again behind them. "What could he have left at his dad's grave? Whatever it is, he must've done it before he left."

"I doubt he would've had someone drop it off, so you're probably right," Mac agreed. "But I have no idea what it could be. He must've been worried something could go wrong even before he left... damn, that bastard really planned everything." They got inside the Cobra and Mac started the engine again, this time taking a few seconds to enjoy how it purred. "I meant what I said, I'm punching him when I see him."

"I'll be right behind you," Riley said, not commenting on the way Mac put the Cobra in gear and screeched out of the parking lot, just because he could. "And once we loop the others in, there's gonna be a line to punch him." She rubbed a hand over her mouth and stared out the window. "I wish he would've told us how nervous he was about this mission."

"He probably didn't want to worry you," Mac said, his chest tightening. "And me..." He swallowed hard, fingers tightening around the wheel. "He probably didn't feel like talking to me. I... wasn't being a good friend around that time when he left."

"What?" Riley asked, frowning a little. "What are you talking about?"

"That whole thing with finding my dad... it fucked me up, more than I let on to you and Bozer," Mac said, merging on to the highway. "Jack tried to help, but I... I couldn't deal with it. First I ran away to Nigeria, and then... I was cruel to him when he didn't deserve it."

Riley was quiet for a moment. "I noticed that, yeah," she said softly, and Mac felt even worse. "I mean, your jokes were sometimes a bit... meaner than usually, and... you didn't work that much together, did you?"

"I think Jack asked Matty for separate assignments," Mac replied, words almost getting stuck in his throat. "I didn't do it, and she wouldn't have done it on her own. I... I think I really hurt him, Riley. I didn't mean to, but... I did."

"Jesus," Riley muttered, shaking her head a little. "And of course he was too emotionally constipated to say anything. Or call you on your shit." She sighed. "Then again, I never understood why he didn't follow you to Nigeria. He kept talking about going, but he never did. Then he got the idea that him tracking down Walsh would bring you back, and that was when he got in trouble."

"He almost died," Mac whispered, remembering all too well how Jack had been trapped in that car speeding in the direction of the edge of that cliff. "And that was my fault too." He exhaled shakily. "I made a lot of mistakes back then, but... I will make it up to him. I just want to find him."

"We will," Riley said, her voice full of conviction. She reached over and squeezed Mac's arm. "You can apologize to him for all that, and then _he_ can apologize for faking his death." She went quiet again as Mac left the highway, cruising quiet, residential streets. "You gonna tell him you're in love with him?"

Mac almost crashed them into a tree, swerving back in the last second. "W-what?" he stuttered out, his heart pounding. "What are you talking about?"

"Mac," Riley said softly, squeezing his arm again. "It's okay. I know you're in love with him... and I know you know it too."

Mac forced himself to breathe, easing his foot off the gas and turning into the cemetery. He had been here a handful of times with Jack and a couple of times on his own, so he knew where to park in order to walk the shortest distance to Senior's grave. "I... I never knew how to tell him, or if I should," he admitted, killing the engine and squeezing his eyes closed. "He was the most important person in my life, and I didn't want to lose him."

"I don't think you would lose him," Riley said, her voice still soft. " _You_ are the most important person in _his_ life. You have been for a very long time."

Mac shook his head, doing his best not to tear up. "Pretty sure that's you," he murmured, giving Riley a shaky smile. "I'm... just a good friend. That's it."

"You could never just be anything, Mac," Riley said as they got out of the car, a flashlight from her backpack in her hand. "And you haven't seen the way he looks at you. It's the same way he looked at my mom, a long time ago. Like you hung the moon and all the stars too."

"That's... impossible," Mac whispered, locking the car and trying to ignore the way his heart fluttered. "It can't be."

"I know I won't be able to convince you," Riley said with a smile, heading in the direction of Senior's grave, and Mac suddenly realized she had been here before too, so she knew where to go. "But maybe once we find him he will tell you himself."

"Maybe," Mac mumbled, but he refused to let himself get his hopes up. They both stopped short of Senior's grave, because next to it... next to it was the hole meant for Jack, as well as the headstone they had ordered. "I forgot about this. Fuck."

"Try to ignore it," Riley said, but her voice wavered. "What, um... what do you think we're looking for?"

"I don't know," Mac said, crouching down in front of Senior's grave. "Like we said, whatever it is, Jack did it before he left, so... he must've been smart about it, hidden it somehow."

"So that no one would steal it, makes sense," Riley agreed, walking around the grave with the flashlight. "Maybe he wrote something on the stone?"

"No, anyone could've spotted that," Mac muttered, chewing on his lower lip as he reached for the tags again. "He put the S on the tags, S for Senior... it's all about that S."

"Maybe we missed our calling as conspiracy theorists," Riley mused, holding the flashlight up high so Mac could see everything at once. "We should start a podcast."

"Without Bozer? He'd kill us." Mac's eyes skated over the lettering on Senior's grave... and then they looked down at the ground. "What if he buried something here?"

"That way no one would've found it unless they were looking for it," Riley said slowly, shifting closer to the headstone. "You said it's all about the S, right? So what if he buried it under that letter?"

"Could be," Mac said, looking at _JACK S. DALTON SR._ written on the stone. He followed the S with his finger until he touched the grass, a little moist with dew, and he buried his fingers in the ground. It wasn't unlike counting the vertebrae in the dead man's back and Mac shuddered but forced himself to keep going. He had to dig down several inches before his fingers hit something plastic... a sandwich bag, from the feel of it. He pulled it out and shook the dirt off, holding it up in the light. "It's a USB stick," he said, pulse pounding faster. "And... it has my name on it."

"We were right," Riley breathed out, shrugging off her backpack. They both sat down on the grass, not caring that it was wet, and Riley pulled the rig out of the backpack, quickly turning it on. "I've never used my computer at a cemetery before," she commented, her voice strained. "Come on, plug it in."

"My hands are shaking," Mac whispered, taking a steadying breath before he plugged the stick into Riley's computer. A single file popped up, and from the looks of things it was a video. "Okay, Riles... go ahead."

She clicked the file, and it wasn't what Mac had expected. He had figured (or hoped) it might have been a recording of Jack, but instead it seemed like Jack was behind the camera. What played was about sixty seconds of shaky, clandestine footage showing... a bunch of classified files?

When the video ended they both stared at the screen for a moment. "What are those files?" Mac eventually asked, his brain once again working overtime. "He clearly recorded that video before he left, right? But why didn't he... just send the files over? Where did he even get those from?" He rubbed his face with one hand. "Is there a date on the video?"

"Hang on," Riley said, sounding as confused as Mac felt. She tapped at her keyboard. "Okay, the metadata says this was recorded the night before Jack left... so logically, the files must be connected to the Kovacs mission, right?"

"Right, that would make sense," Mac agreed, and something occurred to him. "He didn't send the files because he didn't want to leave a trail, to himself or to us."

"Okay, but... those files, what are they?" Riley asked, playing the video again. "The video is shaky, but the quality is good, so I'll be able to enhance it easily, but... are those some files he kept from the previous Kovacs mission?"

"If they are, that could've gotten him in a ton of trouble with the CIA," Mac said, and glanced around quickly, the hair on the back of his neck rising. "We should go to the Phoenix, Riles. I don't think it's safe to be looking at this here."

"You're probably right," Riley said, and they hustled back to the car, with her cradling her laptop in her arms. "I'll alert the team. They should get there around the same time we do."

"Don't tell them what it's about," Mac said, starting the engine and driving away from the cemetery. He checked the mirrors, but it didn't seem like anyone was following them - the streets were empty thanks to the late hour. "Just in case. Text them all it's an emergency and that's it."

"Gotcha," Riley said, doing exactly that. She shut off her laptop and phone after that, reaching over and plucking Mac's phone from his pocket to do the same to his. "Who do you think could be watching us?"

"I'm honestly not sure anyone is, but it's better to be safe than sorry," Mac replied, deciding to take a tangle of surface streets to the Phoenix, just in case. "Another thing Jack taught me."

He saw Riley smile in the corner of his eye. "Whatever is in those files, Jack wanted us to find them now," she said, clearly thinking out loud. "Not before the mission, not in the middle of it... now. Now that something went wrong." She sighed. "I can't wait to read what's in them, there's got to be a reason for all of this."

"Yeah... and whatever it is, it's nothing good," Mac said, checking his mirrors again... and swallowing hard when he saw the headlights of a big SUV behind them. "Did that car just turn out behind us?"

"Yeah." Riley squinted into the mirror. "Play it cool for right now, let's see what happens."

"It's a middle of the night, there's literally no one else around," Mac muttered, forcing himself to stay calm. "And it's a big SUV. Why does it always have to be a big SUV?" He cursed under his breath. "If the Cobra gets hurt in this, Jack is going to kill me."

Riley chuckled a little, but it sounded strained. "Easy," she said quietly. "We're not that far from the Phoenix. Maybe we can make it."

As if on cue the SUV gained on them, the lights almost blinding where they bounced off the mirrors. "Dammit," Mac said, shifting gears and opening up the Cobra's engine. He blew the next red light and worked through the quickest route to the Phoenix in his head. "Turn your computer back on, quick. I'm going to need you to open the gate, or we're going through it."

"That definitely wouldn't end well for the Cobra," Riley pointed out, turning on her rig, her fingers tapping on the keyboard. "Who are those guys? CIA?"

"Could be," Mac muttered, glancing in the mirror and seeing they managed to get away from the SUV a little. "I don't want to find out the hard way, so we better get to the Phoenix before they get to us."

They really needed to stop talking, because as soon as Mac said that someone leaned out from the passenger's side of the SUV and started shooting at them. Mac swore loudly and colorfully, punching the gas and fighting to keep the Cobra on the road as bullets pinged off its trunk. The back windshield shattered right before he made the turn into the Phoenix on two wheels, and the gate opened just in time. It shut behind them with a crash, much to the bewilderment of the night guard, and the Cobra roared into the parking garage.

Mac stumbled out of the car, running to the back to check the damage. "It's not that bad," he said, mostly trying to convince himself. "It's not that bad, I'll get it fixed and it's going to be just fine-"

"Mac, breathe," Riley interjected, showing up out of nowhere and squeezing his shoulder. "Jack's not going to kill you, it's not a serious damage. Come on, we need to go upstairs."

Mac nodded because she was right, of course she was (even if he had doubts about Jack not killing him), and they hustled to the elevator. They rode up to the level of the war room and when the doors slid open they ran down the hallway. They were the first ones there, so Riley flipped on the lights while Mac fogged the windows, standing by the door to wait for the others.

"It's strange how quiet this place is," Riley commented, sitting in one of the armchairs. "I mean, I know it's a middle of the night, but... still, it feels weird."

Before Mac could reply and agree with that, he heard footsteps outside and a moment later Matty and his dad walked into the war room - Mac wasn't surprised they were the first ones to show up. "Angus?" James asked, looking him over and searching for injuries. "What the hell is going on?"

"Dad, I... I think we should wait until everyone else gets here," Mac started, though he was secretly touched by his father's concern. "I'd rather only explain this once."

"What the fuck is that?" Matty asked, walking up closer to the big screen, where Riley had cued up the footage from Jack's USB stick. "Are those CIA files?"

"Possibly?" Riley replied, seeming shocked by Matty's rather... passionate reaction. She quickly did something on the keyboard and the screen went dark. "Like Mac said, it's... easier to explain it just once," she added when Matty threw her a sharp look.

Thankfully they were saved from Matty when Russ stumbled through the door, looking half-asleep, wearing jeans and a t-shirt (which was unusual as it was)... with a robe thrown on top of it.

"What the- " Russ's jaw cracked around a yawn " -bloody hell is happening? Do you know what time it is?"

"Yes, we're aware," James said dryly. "You okay, Taylor?"

"Evidently he isn't a morning person," Bozer commented as he ducked in, hopping on his crutches, looking decidedly more put together than Russ. "Where's Dez?"

"I am a morning person, Bozer," Russ mumbled, dropping in the chair, looking like he was about to fall asleep. "However, it's not morning. It's a middle of the bloody fucking night."

"Desi's not here yet," Mac answered Bozer's question, rolling his eyes at Russ. "But she's coming... I think."

Desi burst through the door at that moment, her hair in a messy ponytail and her outfit a shirt Mac recognized as one of his button downs paired with jeans and boots. "What's wrong?"

Mac took a deep breath. "When I start talking, you guys are going to think we've lost it," he said, sitting on the arm of Riley's chair. "But we haven't, and we've got proof. I just... I don't want this to be another Codex disaster."

"It won't be," Matty said immediately, surprising Mac with how quickly she replied. "I promise. Now tell us what the fuck is going on because I have a bad feeling about it already."

Mac nodded and exchanged a look with Riley, taking a deep breath. "We think that Jack- _no_ , we don't think, we know. Jack faked his death. He's alive."

Stunned silence answered him, and unsurprisingly since he was the least invested in Jack, Russ was the first one to recover. "And how do you know that?"

"Several different ways, actually," Riley said, ticking off the salient points on her fingers. "We've got the manniversary clue, the incorrect letter on his dog tags, the teeth and spine of the body at the funeral home, and the USB stick we found at his father's grave."

"Okay, okay, slow down," Bozer said, recovering a moment later, looking between Mac and Riley with wide eyes. "What manniversary clue? I thought Mac figured out the clue already? When he realized there was no Kovacs?"

"There was more to that," Mac replied, a little surprised he wasn't being called crazy, but he wasn't complaining. Taking another deep breath, he told everyone about how Jack had talked about faking Mac's death next, about going to Riley, about the dog tags, breaking into the funeral home, and then what happened at the cemetery.

By the time he was done speaking they all looked shell-shocked, and Mac didn't blame them at all. In fact, he was familiar with the feeling. "Oh, and then on our way here we got shot at," he added absently. "Jack's Cobra has some holes and a busted windshield, but it's fine because I'm going to punch him before he can kill me."

"Well, that's healthy," Matty muttered to herself, then said in a louder voice, "Okay, so Dalton is actually alive. That means our mission isn't completed."

Mac blinked because... despite all the proof he hadn't expected them to believe him so easily. "First question, what's on that USB stick?" James asked, glancing at Riley. "I'm assuming what was on the screen earlier has something to do with it."

"And second question, who was shooting at you?" Russ asked, sounding and looking more awake. "Were you being followed?"

"Evidently, yeah," Desi said, crossing her arms over her chest. "The real question is, did they know it was you? Or was it someone who knew Jack's car?"

"I... didn't think of that,' Mac admitted, kicking himself mentally. "The Cobra's been sitting in my driveway... I guess it's possible someone could've planted a tracker on it."

"We presumed it was the CIA who came after us," Riley added, frowning. "But they would think Jack is dead, so they'd be assuming he left something behind for us that they didn't want us to find."

"We'll figure that out in a minute," Matty said, walking up closer to the screen. "Those files I saw when Jim and I got here. They were on the USB stick?"

"Kind of," Mac replied, running his fingers through his hair. "There was a video file that Jack apparently recorded the night before he left. It's about a minute long and it's just him recording some classified documents. We haven't had a chance to get a good look at them yet."

"They must be about Kovacs, right?" Bozer asked, watching Riley as she threw the video on screen again. "I mean, that's kind of the only thing that would make sense."

"Normally I'd agree with that, but now we know that Kovacs was a conglomerate of assholes," Russ pointed out, running a hand through his infuriatingly perfect hair. "Jack wasn't aware of that at the time he made the video, but that doesn't mean he didn't have files on Kovacs's associates who might have actually been part of it."

"What I'd like to know is where the hell Jack got those files from," Matty said, looking unusually troubled. "And why he had them in the first place. The Kovacs mission had supposedly been wrapped a long time ago, so... why had he kept those files for all those years?"

The video played on a loop on the screen and Desi frowned. "What if they aren't old? Could they have been messengered to him before the mission started?"

"That would be old school for the CIA," James said, but he looked thoughtful. "But Jack is an old school operative... since he was leading the strike team, I suppose it's possible."

"Those files are highly classified, so they would have been for Jack's eyes only," Matty said, looking at James and then at Mac. "But Jack wouldn't have cared about that, he would've much rather created a back-up plan, in case something had gone wrong."

"He knew we never would've gotten the access to those documents," Mac breathed out, glancing at Riley who was typing on the keyboard, working on making the files readable. "So he left them in a safe spot, just in case... and now he made sure I got the dog tags with the clue." He took a deep breath. "The answer to why he faked his death and where he is, is in those files."

"You think the physical files still exist somewhere?" Bozer asked. "Or did Jack destroy them?"

"Protocol would've been to destroy them," Russ mused, rubbing at his beard. "But Jack could've hidden them somewhere. After all, we can only see the labels and not the contents."

"Okay, I'm slowing the video down to half speed and I'm going to take a bunch of screenshots," Riley declared, and proceeded to do exactly that. The still images filled the screen instead of the video, and some of the labels were now readable. "Anything stand out to anybody?"

Everyone moved closer to the screen, focused on the documents. There were names on some of the labels, single words on the other ones that Mac assumed were pseudonyms or code names, but none of them sounded familiar to him. He made sure to cross-reference everything he saw with the names he had come across when they had been in Croatia, but nothing rang a bell.

"Hang on," James suddenly said, sounding... shocked. "Is that... no. It can't be."

They all turned to look at him at once and Mac would have thought it was funny if the situation hadn't been so dire. "Dad? What is it?"

"This, here," James said, pointing at a file labeled _Kelvin, M._ "Marcus Kelvin was a scientist I worked with back when I was first developing KX7. I haven't heard his name in years, that's why I was so surprised."

"What would Kelvin's name be doing in a bunch of files related to Kovacs?" Riley wondered aloud, tapping at her keyboard and bringing up everything they had on Marcus Kelvin. "And if you haven't heard his name in that long, how do we know he's alive?"

"We don't, I mean... this could just be a coincidence," James said, but he didn't sound convinced. "I'm assuming there are a lot of guys whose last name is Kelvin and their names start with M."

"Probably... but let's say it's the same guy," Mac started, crossing his arms over his chest. "Does that mean the CIA suspected him of working with Kovacs? Back when they thought Tiberius Kovacs was a man?"

"That would be the implication, yes," Russ said, pushing himself out of his chair, the bathrobe fluttering around him like a cape. "Would Kelvin do something like that, James?"

"I'm honestly not sure," James replied, and Mac wasn't used to hearing his father sound so uncertain. "He was always a bit of an odd duck, no question. He disappeared after Jonah betrayed me... Riley, would you be able to find him? Because I think this is too much of a coincidence to be nothing. Even if Jack didn't know I'd be here, maybe he thought Angus would recognize the name, since you two spent so much time looking for me."

"I'll try, yeah," Riley said, and started typing on the keyboard again.

"I... I don't remember that name," Mac murmured, chewing on his lower lip. "I... wouldn't recognize it, so... it's a good thing you're here."

"Hey, this is not your fault," James immediately said, but Mac didn't feel like agreeing with him. What he did feel, however, was useless, because Jack had left those clues for _him_ , but he had no idea what to do. "The names of people who worked with me were classified."

"I know, but... he's depending on _me_ to figure this out, Dad," Mac said, looking at his father and willing him to understand. "And if I don't know what to do, then-"

"Hey, what are we? Chopped liver?" Matty interjected, coming closer to him and smacking his hip lightly. "We're a family, Mac. We solve our problems together, and Jack knew that when he set this up. Even if there was no love lost between him and Jim, he had to know you'd show this to him and the rest of us."

"What he didn't consider was me almost dying, but hey, it worked out," James said lightly, clearly trying to lighten the mood. "Anything on Kelvin, Riley?"

"No," Riley replied slowly, frowning when she looked at him. "Which is weird. People don't disappear, ever. Even if they die, their data and information floats around, but... there's _nothing_ about Kelvin. It all stops around the time Walsh betrayed you."

"He's using an alias," Russ said, tilting his head. "You said he disappeared, right? He must've been living under a different name."

"People can change their names but not their faces," Bozer said, leaning forward eagerly. "Not unless they know somebody like me. Riley, look for-"

"Yeah, I'm on it," Riley blurted out, taking Kelvin's old government headshot and aging it until he e sort of like James. "I'll run this through Shodan. In the meantime, see if you can come up with his alias. My money is on something nerdy."

"How are we supposed to figure out his fake name?" Desi asked incredulously. "That's impossible."

"James, I'm afraid you're the one who has the biggest change of figuring this out," Russ said, ignoring the way James glared at him. "You're the only one here who actually knew the guy. Did he have any particular interests or hobbies that could help us narrow this down?"

James was quiet for a moment, deep in thought. "He liked Star Trek?" he offered, which was the last thing Mac had expected. "His last name was Kelvin and that was the name of a ship, so we'd tease him for that."

"Riley, try cross referencing that photo with names like Kirk, McCoy, and Montgomery," Mac suggested, watching data fly by on the big screen. "Actually, just find a list of common names that appear throughout the franchise. That should be on the internet somewhere."

"God, he's such a nerd," Riley commented, smiling a little, but she did what Mac had asked for.

"Hang on, you're into computers and stuff, aren't you a nerd too?" Bozer asked, his eyes widening when Riley slowly turned to glare at him. "No, of course you're not. You're cool!"

"Don't worry, Riley, I'm the one who outnerds everyone," Mac said, getting up and smiling at her before he headed for the door. "I'll be right back, I... coffee. Yeah, I need some coffee."

"I'll come with you," Desi said, in a way that didn't broker an argument, and Mac cringed internally. He thought that as soon as they got out of the war room she was going to bring up him dumping her, but she didn't . "Are you okay?"

"I'm... no, not really," Mac admitted as they walked to the break room. He was going to say he was fine as a reflex, but what was the point? The whole team was probably as fucked up over this as he was. "I was just getting a grip on the fact that Jack was dead, and... he's not."

"Only Dalton would try to pull off something like this and actually succeed," Desi said without looking at him. "But between him being dead and him being alive, it's better that he's still here."

"Yeah, of course," Mac muttered softly because that was true - no matter how much he was going to yell at Jack once he found him, he was going to hug him after that because a few hours ago he would have given up anything to bring him back. "It's just... messed up."

Desi nodded her agreement and went quiet until they started the coffee pots. "Mac? I... I'm sorry for how I treated you during the whole Codex fiasco." When he looked at her in surprise, she offered him a weak smile. "I'm not trying to get you to take me back or anything, don't worry. I just... I thought you should know. I shouldn't have doubted you the way that I did."

"I... thank you," Mac replied softly after a moment. "You saying that, it... means a lot. Really." Desi smiled at him again before turning her attention to the coffee, and Mac swallowed hard, knowing he owed her an explanation. "I'm sorry too," he started, chewing on his lower lip. "For... how I ended things yesterday. I shouldn't have just... said we were done and then walked away."

"No, you shouldn't have... but in a way, I don't blame you." Desi poured them both a mug of coffee before she grabbed a tray to set up cups for the others. "Our relationship was never going to work, and I think Jack's death - or what we thought was his death - was your breaking point."

Mac blinked in surprise because he had kind of expected her to yell at him or something like that. "Yeah, it... it was," he said quietly because it was true. "It made me realize that I... couldn't do it any longer, I'm sorry." He sighed. "If you knew it was never going to work... why did you get back together with me again? Introduced me to your parents?"

Desi rolled her eyes. "If I didn't introduce you to my parents they probably would've showed up at my condo and refused to leave. Not really a choice." She picked up the tray and waited for him to get the door. "Plus... there was a part of me that wanted to _make_ it work, even if that wasn't a good idea."

Mac nodded because he could understand clinging to something and not wanting to let it go, even though it wasn't the best thing to do. "I know I'm repeating myself, but I'm sorry," he apologized again, grabbing his coffee and opening the door. "I mean it."

"I know you do, Mac," Desi replied, giving him another weak smile as they made their way back to the war room. Mac held the door open for her again, and he was startled by Russ almost throwing himself on them to get to the coffee.

"Finally," he groaned, snatching a cup from the tray. "What took you so long? Couldn't help but make out in the break room?"

Desi's expression shuttered faster than Mac had ever seen, her eyes going flat and her mouth wobbling for a split second before she got it together. "Fuck you, Taylor," she snapped, setting the tray down hard enough that the rest of the coffee sloshed dangerously. "See if I ever do anything nice for you again."

"This might be the time to mention that Desi and I broke up," Mac said, suppressing a smile when Matty was the only one brave enough to reach past Desi for a cup of coffee. "Yes, for good this time, and no, we don't want to talk about it."

"But isn't Desi wearing one of your-" Bozer started, but fell silent up when Desi gave him her best death glare. "Shutting up now."

"Okay, moving on," Matty said loudly, and Mac was grateful for that because the last thing they needed was awkwardness slowing them down. "While you two were making coffee we managed to track down Kelvin."

"And he _is_ using an alias derived from Star Trek," Riley added, bringing up a copy of a Maine driver's license. "James T. Montgomery. According to DMV records and Shodan, he's living in Caribou, near the border with Canada."

"Then that's where we need to be," Mac said, the warmth of adrenaline and the coffee hitting his system at once. "Who's coming and who's staying here?"

"Obviously you're going, Mac, and I'm assuming Riley is too," Matty replied, smiling a little. "I don't know if Jack's there, but I can't imagine either of you staying behind." Her gaze shifted to James. "I know you usually stay here, but considering you actually know Kelvin, you should go too."

"I'll stay," Bozer volunteered, and when Matty raised an eyebrow he added hurriedly, "Not that you need my help, but I did just get shot. Probably better if I run comms."

"I'm going," Desi said, rolling up the sleeves of her shirt and pulling the hem down over her gun - Mac had the distinct feeling he was not getting it back. "And I'm sure Taylor wants to come since he doesn't trust us with his jet."

"You're a destructive bunch, can you blame me?" Russ asked, shrugging a little. "So yes, I would like to go... unless Matilda here has something else for me to do."

"And since when do you care about that?" Matty raised one eyebrow. "Go. You're less annoying when I don't have to look at you."

Mac snorted and led the way out of the war room, and they made a quick detour to the locker room to grab their overnight bags, just in case. Then they headed down to the garage and piled into an SUV, which Russ drove because he was a control freak. "You know, that's something you have in common with Jack," Riley commented from her place in the passenger's seat. "He always has to drive too."

"Oh yeah? Maybe I'll like that guy then," Russ commented, and Mac snorted so hard he almost choked. He was squashed in the backseat behind Russ with his dad in the middle and Desi behind Riley, but it was fine, he didn't mind.

"Jack knows you," he said, smiling when everyone looked at him in surprise. "Well, not personally, but he knows _of_ you. Never heard a good thing about you from his mouth."

"That isn't surprising," Russ said, sighing deeply. "My reputation tends to proceed me no matter where I go, it seems. For the record, while I never met Jack I've heard of him too. His record as an operative is... impressive, to say the least."

"There's never been another sniper of Jack's caliber in the military," Desi said, her hands folded in her lap as the familiar route to the airport passed by their windows. "That many confirmed kills is unheard of."

Mac couldn't help but smile a little as pride warmed him up from the inside. While he knew exactly how amazing and badass Jack was, sometimes people tended to forget about it, fooled by his goofy and dorky exterior without realizing that was Jack's way of hiding his smart he was. It was nice to listen to the others speak of him in this way, though, and Mac had to try very hard not to start gushing. "Jack's the best of the best," was what he said instead. "That's why he's pulling this off."

"That's why I picked him to be your overwatch," James said quietly. "Because he was the best person for the job. Now let's just hope we're as good at our jobs as he thinks we are."

"No pressure," Riley muttered as they arrived at the airport.

Russ's jet was all ready to go - Matty must have called ahead - so they got on board and soon they were up in the air, headed for the municipal airport in Caribou.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Once again I'm blown away by all of your comments! ♥ 
> 
> We really hope you like this chapter 😈

The flight took a little over six hours and by the time they landed in Caribou Mac was a nervous wreck. He had spent the entire flight thinking about Jack and all the clues, checking if he hadn't missed anything, and now that they were actually in Caribou he had to try very hard to stay calm. He had no idea if Jack was actually here, but even if he wasn't then another piece of the puzzle must have been.

"So what are the odds that Jack is actually here?" Desi asked while Russ signed for their rental car. January in Maine was cold, much colder than they were all used to, and Mac was grateful they had taken their bags with them and could have changed into warmer clothes before they had left the plane. "Because this seems too easy."

"I'm guessing he isn't here," James said, rubbing his gloved hands together. "But hopefully Kelvin can give us another clue, even if he doesn't think he has one."

"I still can't believe a guy you worked with so many years ago could actually be involved in the Kovacs thing," Mac said, shaking his head. "I mean... there has to be a reason why his name was in those files, but... why would a scientist be involved with what we thought was a Hungarian terrorist? That later turned out to be a big scheme, but whatever."

"Well, don't terror organizations use scientists?" Riley ventured. "Not everybody in a group like that is the muscle - there have to be money guys, and hackers, and even bomb geeks."

"Kelvin is a chemist by trade," James said, climbing into the SUV when Russ drove up. "That could be useful in something like the Kovacs operation."

"Did he seem like a guy that would join a terrorist organization?" Mac asked, him and Riley getting into the back with James while Desi took the passenger seat this time.

"Not really, but like I said, he was a bit... odd," James replied, sounding deep in thought. "But then again, I didn't see Jonah betraying me coming either, so... maybe I'm not the best person to answer this question."

"Okay, I don't really want to be the one to bring this up," Desi said, twisting around to look at them after putting Kelvin's address into the GPS. "But is it possible that Walsh could be part of Kovacs?"

Mac hadn't considered that, but it seemed like a possibility. "I don't know if Walsh would ever work with other people again," he said, glancing at his dad. "But maybe? Could explain why we haven't been able to find him."

James was quiet for a moment, fingers tapping against his thigh... and Mac recognized that as one of the things _he_ sometimes did. "What if Jack found out Walsh was working with Kovacs?" he asked quietly, and Mac's heart stopped. "We already know at least some members of that group knew Jack was hunting them, but... if Walsh had found out-"

"He would've known exactly how to bring Jack down," Mac finished for him, swallowing hard. "By going after us."

"So Jack fakes his death in order to continue pursuing Walsh under the radar," Russ added, nodding along as he drove. "Yes, that makes sense, but it still doesn't explain who was shooting at you earlier."

"My money is still on the CIA," Riley said. "Think about it: if they even suspected Jack knew something about Walsh's whereabouts, they'd want that information. And they weren't shooting to kill."

"Not much of a consolation, considering I'm going to get killed anyway when Jack sees the bullet holes in his beloved Cobra," Mac muttered. "They could've just reached out to us to ask about it. Also, it seems like they at least suspected Jack's still alive because why follow us in the first place?"

They all thought about that for a moment, and then Russ asked a question that made Mac's skin crawl: "What if your house is bugged? Were you talking to yourself? You tend to do that when you're working on a problem."

"Shit," Mac said, rubbing a hand over his mouth. They had passed through what qualified as downtown and Russ slowed down, looking for Kelvin's address. "They probably figured if Jack did know something, I'd be the one to inherit the information."

"I take it as a yes, and you _were_ talking to yourself," Riley said, smiling a little.

"You... could say that," Mac mumbled, not about to admit that he had been talking to Jack because he had missed him so much. He reached for his phone. "I'll text Matty and tell her to send a team to my house."

"Good plan," Desi commented as they rolled to a stop. "That blue house down there is Kelvin's. How do we want to play this?"

"Someone should do a walk by and see if it looks like he's home, or if he has company," Russ said, glancing back at Mac and Riley. "How about you two? Neither of you are particularly suspicious looking."

"Thanks... I guess," Mac said slowly, exchanging a look with Riley. "Fine, let's go."

They all put their comms in their ears and turned it on before Mac and Riley got out of the car. "So... we're supposed to just slowly walk by his house?" Riley asked dubiously. "Not suspicious at all."

Mac grabbed Riley's hand and smiled at her. "It's only weird if we make it weird." They stayed on the opposite side of the street from Kelvin's house, and Mac noted that all the curtains were drawn. Odd for almost noon, but maybe he was a late sleeper. "No vehicles outside and I don't see any movement. Could he still be in bed?"

"He used to be a morning person," James said, so that was bad news. "All chipper and annoying, just like Taylor."

" _Hey_!" Russ exclaimed indignantly. "I don't like wasting my day, there is nothing wrong with that."

"I don't agree, but whatever," Mac muttered, waiting until they were far enough from the house to cross the street. "Should we go knock on the door? Or, dad, maybe you should do it?"

"You two give it a try," James suggested, accompanied by the sound of car doors slamming. "Desi and I will go around back in case he tries to make a run for it. Taylor, stay behind the wheel, we may need a getaway driver depending on how this goes."

"Wonderful," Russ muttered, and Mac could picture him slumping down in his seat like a petulant child. "I love being the third wheel."

"You just made it sound like me and Riley, and my dad and Desi are on a double date, which is _bleh_ ," Mac groaned, making a face. "You're not being the third wheel. You're behind the wheel, there's a difference."

Russ grumbled something unintelligible under his breath, but everyone ignored him. Mac let go of Riley's hand since there was no need to pretend anymore, and they slowly approached the front door and knocked on it.

The door swung inward under the weight of Mac's fist, and he encountered the stink of death for the second time in the same day - only this time it was fresher. "Oh fuck," he muttered, taking a step inside. "Dad, Dez, I think Kelvin's dead." He heard them both swear as he made his way through the small, plain home, until he found Kelvin on his back in a pool of blood, his face frozen in shock and rigor. "Single gunshot to the forehead, and they used a silencer or the cops would be here. He let the killer in, but they didn't close the door all the way when they left. Must've been in a hurry."

"If he let the killer in, that means he probably knew them, right?" Riley asked, and Mac didn't miss the way she didn't step into the room. He didn't blame her, after their night at the funeral home he also could have done without seeing any bodies for a while.

"Yeah, probably," he replied, just as James and Desi showed up. "The question is who that was... and why they killed him."

Desi crouched down and pulled on a pair of gloves. "Whoever they were, Mac is right about them being in a hurry," she said, sticking two fingers under Kelvin's leg and pulling out a cell phone. "They left this behind, but it's locked. Riles, can you get in?"

"What kind of question is that?" Riley rolled her eyes and took the phone, bringing it over to the counter with her laptop and plugging it in. "Of course I can."

"They also could've left it behind because they knew there was nothing on it," James pointed out, raising his hands when Mac glared at him. "Right, okay. Positive thinking."

"Excuse me, can I come inside now?" Russ asked on the comms, making Mac jump since he had kind of forgotten about him. "I want to be involved!"

"Oh my god, it's like a five year old," Desi mumbled, still poking around under the body. "Hey, there's something else here." She pulled out a scrap of paper, holding it up to the light. "This is... a bunch of numbers and letters?" She held it out to James and Mac. "It looks like part of some kind of formula?"

James accepted the piece of paper, his eyes widening as soon as he looked at it. "That's... the KX7 formula," he said, his voice shocked. "Never thought I'd see this again."

Mac walked up to him, looking over his shoulder. "Yeah, I recognize it from your research," he confirmed, glancing at the body again. "Why did he have it on him? If the killer wanted it, they should've taken it."

"I don't know... but this isn't Kelvin's handwriting," James said slowly, jumping when the door opened and Russ walked in. "Goddammit, Taylor!"

"I told you I wanted to be included," Russ sniped, frowning when he sees the body. "Gross."

"Whose handwriting is it?" Mac asked his father, ignoring Russ. "Dad?"

"It's Walsh's," James whispered, sounding stunned. "Whoever killed Kelvin must've brought this with him."

"That doesn't make any sense," Mac said, running his hands through his hair. "I mean, I guess it confirms Walsh is somehow involved, but... what the hell is going on?" He did his best to stay calm, but for now everything was confusing and it didn't bring him any closer to finding Jack. "Riley? Anything on that phone?"

"Yeah, I've got something," Riley said, waving them over. They all crowded around her to see the phone screen blown up on her rig. "This conversation seems like it might be between Walsh and Kelvin. They're talking about Walsh taking over 'the company' now that the boss is gone and how he wants to produce 'K', and Kelvin keeps saying he isn't interested in helping. The last text from who I think is Walsh says he's sending somebody to talk some sense into Kelvin." She waved toward a duffle bag on the couch. "Looks like he was on his way out when whoever killed him showed up."

"Talk some sense?" Russ repeated, glancing at Kelvin's body again. "Well, that certainly doesn't mean what it used to."

"Clearly either something went wrong, or Walsh just sent the killer to get rid of Kelvin and shut him up," James said grimly. "It also seems like we were right about Walsh being involved... and apparently he's planning on taking over Kovacs."

"It seems like he might have already done that," Riley said, typing so fast her fingers blurred. "I used Kelvin's contacts to get an idea of who else might involves in Kovacs, and four of them have met sudden ends in the time since we were in Croatia."

"Shit, he's moving fast," Mac said, his mind working overtime once more. "Kelvin got killed a few hours ago, so he must be the most recent one. Can you use Walsh's number to track him?"

Riley continues typing on the keyboard for a moment, but then she shook her head. "No, the signal keeps bouncing," she said, and Mac swore quietly, even though he had suspected this wouldn't have worked. "He's covering his tracks."

"We need to find Jack," Mac muttered, and starts pacing. "If he's tracking Walsh then he might have an idea where he is."

"Sure, that's why we need to find Jack," Desi said wryly. "To find Walsh, that's it."

"Shut up," Mac mumbled, but there was no heat behind it - only in his cheeks when they turned pink. He cleared his throat. "Okay, so where do we go from here? It's not like Jack left a clue with Kelvin."

"But we don't know that, do we?" Russ said, putting a hand on Mac's chest to stop his movement. "Walsh isn't the only one who could pay someone to come here. And since we're on South Street, there are two big S stickers on Kelvin's mailbox."

Mac blinked at him, but before he could say anything Riley spoke up, "You think he left us a message?" She glanced at Mac. "At the cemetery you did say it was all about the S. Maybe Russ is right, maybe there's a clue here."

Mac swallowed hard and nodded, forcing himself to focus. "I'm going to check that mailbox," he said. "You guys look around the house for anything... weird."

Desi gave him a mock salute with her bloody gloved hand. "Got it."

Mac turned and headed outside, and he was a little surprised when Russ came with him. "What are you doing?"

"Coming with you," Russ said, like it should have been obvious. "Somebody wants the information you have, remember? I'm not going to leave you out by the street alone."

Mac rolled his eyes, but he was secretly touched by Russ's concern. "I can take care of myself," he replied, approaching the mailbox. "Plus I highly doubt someone is going to try and grab me in the middle of the day."

"It wouldn't be the first time," Russ pointed out, glancing around the quiet street. "Better safe than sorry, Angus."

"Yeah, I guess," Mac agreed, crouching down in front of the mailbox, looking up at each S and lining them up with the dirt. Luckily there wasn't much snow on the ground, but he took out his Swiss Army Knife anyway, knowing it would be easier to dig with the blade because it was frozen. "I really hope there's something here, because otherwise we're stuck."

"If that's the case, we go back to the files Jack filmed and go through them again," Russ said, like it was the easiest thing in the world. "We're going to find him, I'm sure of it."

"Your confidence is... surprising, but appreciated," Mac muttered, grunting when the ground didn't budge at first. Eventually he managed to dig a little hole, slowly making it deeper... until the blade hit something.

It was bigger than the bag with the USB stick and solid too, so Mac tossed the knife to Russ and dug in with his fingers, heedless of the cold. He came out with another sandwich bag... but inside this one was a cell phone. "Oh my god," he said, jumping up to his feet. He removed the bag and pressed the power button, amazed when it turned on. It was password protected, but that was a minor hurdle. "This has to be from Jack, right?"

"Considering the pattern, I'd say yes, definitely," Russ replied, making a shocked sound when Mac grabbed his arm and tugged him back to the house. They went back to the kitchen where Riley was still doing something on her computer, but she looked up when she heard them.

"We found a phone," Mac said, and her eyes widened. "It was buried next to the mailbox, under the both S."

"Holy shit," Riley exclaimed, taking the phone and trading it for Kelvin's. "Wow, there's some heavy duty encryption on this one. Must be government issue." She glanced at Mac. "I don't suppose you have any idea what the password is? Because otherwise this might take me a while."

"I... I'm not sure," Mac admitted, feeling stumped and hating it. "I'm always breaking Jack's phone? Maybe something about that?"

"Oh, you used to do that to him too?" Russ asked, leaning against the counter. "Good to know."

"God, what could it be?" Mac muttered, ignoring Russ and thinking hard. "It's a phone, so it would make sense if the password was related to me destroying them... but how?" He made a frustrated sound. "He used to joke his phone always winds up getting wired to a vacuum cleaner, or glued to a football, but that doesn't help us."

"You always use them to make bombs," James pointed out as he and Desi came over to join them. "Maybe it's something related to explosions?"

"Bomb nerd," Desi said suddenly, snapping her fingers. "When he told me about you he said you were a skinny little bomb nerd when he first met you. Is it eight letters, Riley?"

Mac could hear Jack's voice in his head saying those words, and he had never thought being called a bomb nerd would have made him emotional, but there he was. "It is," Riley confirmed, glancing at Mac for confirmation. "Should I do it?"

"Go for it," Mac told her, his heart pounding. "It definitely sounds like something Jack would come up with."

Riley tapped in the letters and the phone unlocked, making them all breath sighs of relief. "Okay... there isn't much on here," she said, frowning a little. "No contacts and just the base apps that come with the device... hang on, what's this?" She pulled up a single note saved to the phone. "It says to call this number... who wants to try it?"

Everyone was completely quiet for a moment, and Mac tried to say something, but his mouth refused to work. "Well, I'm going to say what we're all thinking," James said, looking at Mac. "Angus? Are you up for this?"

Swallowing hard, Mac nodded and cleared his throat, accepting the phone with a shaking hand when Riley gave it to him. He looked at the number on the screen and after taking a deep breath, he dialed it, putting the phone to his ear.

It didn't ring. Instead, a female voice informed him he had reached his voicemail inbox and that to continue he needed to enter a four-digit pin. "Shit, another password," he muttered, putting the call on speaker. "Any ideas?"

"Maybe your birthday?" Russ suggested, glancing around. "Or Riley's? Just following the established theme, here."

"No, that's too easy,” Mac said, putting the phone on the counter and leaning against it. "Anyone who did some research would go for those dates. It has to be something only we could guess.”"

"Maybe it's also related to you being a bomb nerd?" Riley suggested. "A significant date or something?"

Mac thought about it for a moment, going back to their army days... and the only significant date he came up with was Jack signing up for another tour and staying with him instead of going back home.

That date was etched in Mac's mind for damn good reason, and he took a deep breath before typing it into the phone. The voice announced that he had one new message and said that he should have pressed one to play it. His knees went weak when Jack's voice filled the room, raspy and pained, but _alive._

"Hey, kid," he started, pausing to cough. "If you're listenin' to this, congratulations, you win the booby prize. I'm still alive, in case that ain't obvious, though for how much longer I can't rightly tell you." Another cough. "Sorry, I'd forgotten how hard gettin' blown up is on the lungs. Been away from you for too long, I guess."

Mac barely stifled a whimper, ducking his head so that the others didn't see him tear up. He braced his forearms on the counter, needing it to keep standing instead of falling down to the floor.

"See, hoss, things got kinda... complicated," Jack continued, clearing his throat when his voice came out too hoarse. "Not sure what you already know, but if you're listenin' to this then I'm guessin' you figured some of the stuff out." A pause. "And if you're not the person that's supposed to be listening to this, kindly fuck off." Mac chuckled weakly, so did the others. "Anyway, kid... take care, alright? Hope your shoulder ain't givin' you too much trouble in this weather."

Another pause, longer this time. Long enough for Mac to catch the sound of water lapping against a shoreline, too loud for it to be anything but deliberate. "And in case for some reason I'm... I'm not here," Jack added hastily, like he had planned on hanging up but had thought better of it. "I just want you to know, hoss... you were the best thing that ever happened to me. Okay, that's it. Bye."

The quiet beep indicated the message was over and the female voice asked if he would have liked to hear the message again, but Mac barely heard it. His knees did give out this time and he slid down on the floor, leaning against the cabinets while his vision blurred. The others were completely quiet, but Mac didn't care, his mind spinning as he replied Jack's message in his head.

A sob broke the silence and Mac's brain absently attributed the sound to Riley - it was followed by the rustling of fabric and shushing, likely by Desi. He startled when a hand touched his shoulder, and he blinked the tears away to see his dad watching him, expression twisted with concern. "Angus?" he started, squeezing lightly. "Where is he? Where's Jack?"

Mac tried to take a deep breath, but he couldn't, not with the lump in his throat. He swallowed hard and closed his eyes for a moment, his poor battered heart pounding like crazy. "Italy," he whispered hoarsely, not missing the look of surprise flashing on his dad's face. "Lake Como."

"Mac," Matty's voice sounded in his ear, and he knew from the quality of it that she was only talking to him, not the others. "I know this is hard, but you've got to keep it together. We can't give up now."

"I know," Mac whispered, exhaling shakily and wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. Then he allowed his dad to help him to his feet, and he almost lost it when he saw Riley. "Oh, Riles."

Tears were streaming down her face, her make-up all smudged, and while she was clearly trying to hide it, her shoulders were shaking with silent sobs. Desi had one arm around her, but she stepped back when Mac got closer, breath getting knocked out of his lungs when Riley hugged him tightly.

"We were right," she whispered shakily, her face buried in his neck. "I... I can't believe it, Mac."

"I know," Mac whispered back, hugging her and pressing his face into her neck. "And I need to... _we_ need to process this, but we can't do it here." He looked at Russ. "We need to get to Lake Como, as fast as possible. I don't care what it takes."

"Yes, absolutely," Russ said right away, and he glanced at the body. "Matty, can you take care of Mr. Kelvin?"

"I'll deal with that," Matty promised. "You just get to the airport."

Swallowing hard, Mac hugged Riley tightly before he pulled back to look at her. "Come on," he said softly, gently tugging her until she was standing. "The sooner we leave the better."

He pulled her toward the door, and she didn't speak again until they were outside. "Do... do you think..." She cleared her throat and swiped at her eyes. "When we get there, do you think we can find him?"

"We've come this far, haven't we?" Was Mac's response, which he knew was a little bit of a cop-out. He glanced down the street instinctively before they crossed it and swore when he saw an oncoming SUV. "Guys, hurry up - we're about to have company."

The others ran out of the house and they all rushed to their car, climbing inside. "Delightful, they found us," Russ muttered, starting the car and driving away, the tires screeching. "Whoever they are."

"Matty, were you able to contact any of your... friends at the CIA?" James asked. "Is that them?"

"Yeah, about that," Bozer said in a tone that Mac immediately didn't like. "We talked to the CIA, and they're swearing up and down that it isn't them. So either it's another letter agency, or-"

"They're private hired help," Desi finished, reaching up to open the car's sun roof, pulling out her gun. "Let me see if I can stop them."

"Fantastic, just what we need, more attention," Russ mumbled, speeding and changing lanes, ignoring the horns blaring around them. "Who the hell are they working for then? That Walsh fella?"

"No, that doesn't make any sense," Mac said, forcing his brain to work. "As far as we know Walsh doesn't know Jack's hunting him. So he wouldn't try and follow us, I'm pretty sure he forgot all about us."

"But Walsh did send somebody to kill Kelvin," James pointed out, wrapping an arm around Desi's leg when she stood up on the seat, shoving her shoulders through the sun roof and firing at the SUV chasing them. "What if they were watching the house to see if anyone came to investigate? It could be unrelated to the shooting in LA."

"Or the CIA could be behind both and they're not telling us," Riley said. "Or it's another agency, like the NSA."

"Whatever, let's just get rid of them," Mac muttered, and James looked at him in surprise. "What? We can figure out who they are later, I just..." He took a deep breath. "I just want to get to the airport and in the air. Finding Jack is our priority, especially since he clearly doesn't feel safe."

"Agreed," Russ said, then raised his voice to be heard over the engine and the bullets flying in their direction. "Desi, are you almost finished?"

"Fuck you, Taylor!" Desi yelled for the second time that day, and fired off one final shot. The SUV behind them burst into flames and swerves into the guardrail, and Desi plopped back down in her seat. "You're welcome."

"Hopefully they don't have any friends," James said, but Mac felt him relax a little where they were pressed together in the backseat. "Taylor, is the jet all fueled up and ready?"

"I texted the pilots," Riley was the one who replied, her voice still hoarse from crying. "They should be ready by the time we get to the airport."

"I'll make arrangements for real luggage for us when we arrive in Milan," Russ said, and Mac noted he was taking a longer route back to make sure they weren't still being followed. "From there we'll have to drive to Lake Como. Any idea where we're going once we get there?"

"The place where I was shot," Mac said, the words forming as the idea did. "He wants us to go there."

"You think he left a clue there?" Desi asked, raising one eyebrow. "It's not like he's camping there."

"I don't know," Mac replied truthfully. "But we have to start there, plus... he's somewhere near the water, I could hear it on the phone. He wouldn't risk staying in a hotel, but... maybe he's renting one of the villas there."

"That is a pretty popular tourist spot," James noted, and when Mac glanced over he saw him looking at Lake Como villas on his phone. "And since most of them are by the water I think it's a good theory."

They arrived at the airport and Russ just barreled on to the tarmac, heedless of security. They all piled out and got on the plane, which was thankfully already running and began taxiing as soon as the door closed.

"Why would Jack pick such a popular place to go to?" Desi asked once they were all in their seats. "Isn't he worried about someone spotting him?"

"It's January," Mac replied, shaking his head. "The coldest month there, so it's a low season. There won't be that many people around."

"That's good for us if things go sideways, but it does make it more difficult to blend in," Riley said, heading to the back of the plane after they were in the air. She returned with two giant papers bags from McDonald's. "Here, I had the pilots pick up some food. We probably won't get to eat again for a while, so we should do it now."

"Thanks, Riles," Mac said softly, grabbing a cheeseburger and some fries for himself. "It won't be easy for us, but... Jack can blend in just fine." He smiled a little. "His Italian is flawless and if he's staying low it will be nearly impossible to find him. For the bad guys, I mean," he quickly added. "I'm hoping something will point us in his direction when we get to the spot where I got shot."

"And you remember exactly where it was?" Russ asked, holding up his hands - one of which had a chicken sandwich in it - when James and Riley both glared at him. "Sorry, it's just that I've been shot a fair amount and I don't think I could recollect the exact locations."

"This one is pretty hard to forget, considering I also thought my girlfriend died but she turned out to be a traitor," Mac said wryly... and when he remembered how he had felt when he had found out Nikki had betrayed him, he looked at Desi in a new light. "Jesus, Dez... I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Mac," Desi replied, shrugging a little. "And to be fair, you can't compare those situations since you weren't _actually_ a traitor."

"Technically neither was she since she later turned out to work for the CIA," Mac said absently, not realizing at first that his free hand had slid up to his scar. "At least I didn't pretend to die?"

"Ah, small favors." James patted him on the knee. "So, this is what we have for a plan? Go to a cliff at Lake Como and hope?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Mac said, smiling a little despite everything. "You've got to admit, it's better than what we usually have to work with."

"True," Russ agreed, pointing a French fry at him. "And if nothing else, we can always improvise."

* * *

When they touched down in Milan it was a middle of the night thanks to the long flight, but also the time difference. Mac rubbed his eyes tiredly because even though he had fallen asleep at one point, he didn't feel that rested, but that was probably because of how nervous he was.

"Alright, I'll... go rent a car. Again," Russ mumbled, yawning a little. "Feels like a deja vu."

It was cold in Milan too, and the chill of the wind cut through Mac even with the layers he was wearing. "I really hope we find Jack soon," Desi commented, her braid whipping in the breeze. "I'm getting tired of freezing my ass off looking for him."

"We'll find him," Mac said quietly, mostly talking to himself. The truth was, he would have slept in a tent in a middle of a blizzard if it had brought him closer to finding Jack, so the weather was the least of his worries. "It should take us about an hour to get to Lake Como, so you'll get a chance to warm up in the car."

Russ pulled up in yet another SUV, this one of German heritage, and they all piled in once more. "I'm beginning to wonder if I should've been a chauffeur," he commented as they peeled out of the airport. "It seems like a profession that would suit me, based on my skill set."

"Will you just let it go already?" James groaned. "I told you to stay in the car _once_ , plus you did join us later at Kelvin's house!"

"Also, you wouldn't let anyone else drive anyway," Riley pointed out, curled up against Mac side since he was sitting in the middle this time. "Don't you remember what happened the last time you let Desi drive?"

Desi twisted around in the passenger's seat and grinned at them. "That was _so_ fun! Remember how everything started on fire?"

"Yes, vividly," Russ drawled, navigating the streets of Milan and getting on the highway with ease. "I also remember a good portion of my hair burning off."

"You have so much of it, no one noticed," Mac teased, grateful for the distraction because otherwise he would have probably driven himself crazy. "Besides, it grew back, didn't it?"

"I'd had a bald _spot_ for a while!" Russ exclaimed, looking at him in the mirror. "It was atrocious!"

"Oh come on, I helped your game with the ladies," Desi said, rolling her eyes. "They all thought you were a cancer patient."

"Yes, because that's so sexy," James deadpanned, but he was grinning. "I know I was beating them off with a stick while I was having chemo."

Mac snorted, he couldn't help it, and Riley also chuckled next to him. "I think it was more of that sad puppy expression you were doing, Russ," she said with a smile. "Some women eat that stuff up, poor guy, needing some love and care-"

"Oh please, I didn't act like a sad puppy!" Russ protested, sputtering when they all laughed. "I didn't!"

"You totally did!" Desi exclaimed, punching Russ in the shoulder, hard enough that he thumped against the door. "It was funny as hell."

They continued to rag on Russ for most of the ride, and Mac had never been more grateful for this group of people he called family. Once they got close to Lake Como he leaned forward and gave Russ more specific directions, and soon they were parked at the same scenic overlook where he and Jack had meant to rendezvous with Nikki all those years ago.

He basically pushed his dad out of the car in order to get out, ignoring the huffed sound James made and stumbling to the exact spot where he had stood when he had caught the bullet. He was immediately hit with a wave of memories and he swallowed hard, glancing around in the dark.

"So... this is where it happened?" Russ asked, as he and the others made their way to him. "You got shot here?"

"Yeah," Mac replied, shivering in the cold wind. "Then I fell into the water."

"Jack must've jumped in after you," Desi observed, peering over the edge of the cliff to the dark churn of the lake. "No way he could've made it down to the shore before you got carried away."

"I guess he did," Mac said in surprise, because that hadn't occurred to him before. "He never brought it up." He glanced around. "So why did he want us to come to this exact spot?"

"Maybe he just referred to your shoulder to let you know he was here at Lake Como?" Riley suggested, walking and glancing around. "Maybe he didn't mean for us to come to this spot?"

"No, I... I think he did," Mac said, pushing the hair out of his eyes. "I mean, yeah, the shoulder thing made me think of Lake Como, so that was a good call... but like we said, we need a starting point. And he knew I would think of this place."

"I don't suppose there's a billboard with a big S on it?" James wondered hopefully, then looked at Russ. "Did you have any tactical equipment put in with our luggage?"

"I see where you're going with this," Russ said, pointing at him and jogging back to the car. He returned with a pair of night vision binoculars and handed them to Mac. "Maybe these will help."

"Thanks," Mac muttered, grabbing the binoculars and putting them on. He blinked a few times, trying to get used to the night vision before he started looking around, searching for anything weird, out of place, or reminding him of Jack. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary at first, disappointment and frustration building up inside him, but then he looked to his left... and a sudden flash of light made him hiss when it blinded him.

Mac pulled the binoculars away from his eyes, blinking hard. "What the...?" He looked at the same spot without them and saw that flash of light repeating in a pattern. In fact, if he stepped back and looked at the whole coastline... there were several buildings with blinking lights. "Morse code," he murmured to himself. "But what are they saying?"

"Angus, you're doing that thing when you start mumbling to yourself," James said, making Mac jump since his dad kind of showed up next to him out of nowhere. "What's going on?"

"Morse code," Mac repeated louder, gesturing at the coastline. "There are... three buildings with lights that flash repeatedly in a pattern. I need a piece of paper. And a pen."

Desi reached into her jacket and pulled out paper and a pen, handing then to him before she held up a flashlight so he could see what he was doing. "You think Jack set up decoys?"

"Definitely," Mac said, glancing over at the lights again. He watched carefully before he started writing. "Okay... first word is MOSCOW."

"Moscow?" Russ repeated with a frown. "What in the bloody hell does that mean?"

"Nothing yet," Mac replied, looking at the second building, waiting for the pattern to start from the beginning. "But once we decipher all three of them I'm sure it will make sense." He watched the lights, writing down the code again and deciphering it... swallowing hard and checking twice to make sure he had gotten it right. "The second word is CAIRO."

"Oh shit, Mac-" Riley started, but he was already running. "Mac, wait! That might not be the right one!"

He barely heard her, consumed by his pulse hammering in his ears and his boots smacking the gravel. He headed down the left side of the lake, skidding down the incline and getting steadily close to the CAIRO strobing in front of his eyes.

He absently wondered if the others were going to decipher the third word and then check the remaining two locations, but he didn't care. Deep in his gut he _knew_ this one was the right one, this was where Jack was, so Mac forced himself to run even faster. It was in moments like this that he was grateful for his freakishly long legs, and thanks to that he reached the building a moment later.

It was a cozy looking villa, built in the Italian style, and in other circumstances Mac would have admired how beautiful it was... but right now he swallowed hard as he got closer to the door. He paused briefly to catch his breath and it fogged in front of his face as he reached up to knock, praying this door wouldn't open like Kelvin's did.

There was a moment of total stillness and silence... and then the door swung inward, revealing Jack Dalton on the other side, a gun aimed at Mac's heart. Recognition flashed in his eyes and he lowered the weapon, opening the door the rest of the way. "You found me."


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, everyone!
> 
> Happy International Women's Day! ♥ 
> 
> I'm really sorry it's been so long since this fic was updated, life got in the way. But here we are with the next chapter and hopefully from now on I will be posting them much quicker :)
> 
> We hope you like it! ♥

Mac stared at him for a moment, unable to move or speak, his stomach twisting almost painfully. Jack stared right back at him, tucking his gun behind the waistband of his jeans before he took a small step forward. "Mac-"

That one word was enough to make something snap inside Mac and he moved to Jack, pushing him hard on his chest as he barreled inside, kicking the door shut behind him. The villa was completely dark, but the lights from the outside made it possible for Mac to make out Jack's features.

"You son of a bitch," he _whimpered_ , and before he could stop himself he took a swing and punched Jack straight in the jaw, making him stumble back. He felt a bit of satisfaction that he had managed to surprise Jack, but then he realized Jack had probably _let_ him punch him, but Mac wasn't thinking about that right now. "How could you do this?" he asked, his voice breaking. "We... we ordered a headstone, we dug out a hole next to your dad's grave!" Everything went a little blurry and it took him a moment to notice he had started crying. "We had a fucking wake for you! And now your Cobra is full of bullet holes!"

Jack touched the spot where Mac had punched him briefly, and then he held both hands out in supplication. "Mac, I'm so sorry," he said, that hoarseness from the voicemail still present in the words. "I know that probably doesn't mean anything to you right now, but... you've got no idea horrible I feel, putting you and the others through all that."

Mac looked at him for a moment, panting for breath, his knuckles aching from hitting Jack... and suddenly all that anger drained out of him because Jack was _alive_ and right in front of him. A loud sob ripped out from Mac's throat and he stumbled forward until he collided with Jack, wrapping his arms around him as he choked out another sob, his knees giving out.

Jack hugged him back so hard it hurt and sank to the floor with him, his cheek pressed against Mac's hair. "I'm so sorry, kid," he choked out, running one hand up Mac's back until he could cup the back of his head. A sob escaped him too, and Mac felt wetness against his ear and neck. "I never, _ever_ wanted to do this to you, understand? It was the last goddamn resort."

Mac made a pathetic sound, clinging to Jack even harder, afraid that he was going to disappear. He buried his face in Jack's neck, taking a shaky breath and whimpering when he inhaled the familiar smell of leather and gunpowder, the most comforting blend in the world. "I thought you were _dead_ ," he whispered, his voice breaking. "Dead. I thought I lost y-you."

"I know," Jack murmured, his lips brushing against Mac's ear, and despite the situation heat burned through Mac's body at that little tickle of a touch. "That was kinda the point. _Everybody_ had to think I was dead in order for me to keep after the little parts of Kovacs... but I wanted you to take down the big fish." A weak chuckle. "And you did. Goddamn, Mac, I am so proud of you."

Mac's poor heart fluttered, the praise making him feel certain things, he couldn't help it. "How... how do you know about that?" he choked out, not ready to pull back just yet. "That we took down Kovacs?"

"I still have ears here and there, hoss, you know me," Jack murmured, slowly rubbing one hand up and down Mac's spine, his touch hot even through Mac's warm jacket. "I hoped you'd get all the clues, you genius."

"I almost didn't," Mac admitted, a waver in his voice that he couldn't help. He knew he should have loosened his grip on Jack's shirt, but he couldn't make his hands work. "If... if my dad hadn't been with us when we were looking at those files, I would've missed Kelvin and-"

"Hey, easy," Jack interjected, hand sliding up again, this time so his fingers could card through Mac's hair. "The important thing is he was and you _did_ figure it out, okay? You made it here, and that's all I could've asked for."

Mac squeezed his eyes shut, trying to calm down, but it wasn't really working. "We're... we're all here," he whispered, hoping the others weren't too mad about him taking off like this... but on the other hand, he didn't care. "I kind of... ran off when I deciphered the message from this house, I... I knew Cairo meant you'd be here." He sniffled. "But my dad is here, Desi... and Riley."

"Oh god, Riles," Jack said, sounding like Mac had punched him in the gut, not the face. "She's gonna hate me... hell, I'm kinda surprised you're even talking to me."

"I could never hate you, Jack," Mac responded, finally drawing back enough to look into Jack's eyes. They were just as richly brown and gorgeous as he remembered, little flecks of gold visible even in the shadows of the villa. "And neither could Riley. We... we both love you too much for that."

Jack's expression twisted, like he was in pain, and he looked at Mac with so much emotion in his eyes... and suddenly Mac couldn't help but remember what Riley had told him earlier, about Jack always looking at him in a certain way. He pushed that memory away almost immediately, his gaze falling on Jack's jaw where he had punched him earlier.

"I'm sorry I hit you," he whispered, brushing his fingertips over Jack's skin, surprised by how soft his stubble was. "It's just... I had to examine that burned body that pretended to be you." He chuckled weakly. "I had to stick my fingers inside his mouth and spine, it was... awful."

Jack leaned into his touch, his eyes closing, and Mac's breathing hitched because... what? "Jesus, Mac," Jack muttered, still holding him tightly. "You don't do anything by halves, huh? I thought you'd take the whole 'hair with DNA on a burned body' thing at face value."

"I needed more to go on," Mac said, biting the inside of his cheek and leaving his hand where it was. "Both for my own sanity... and to convince the others I wasn't crazy."

Jack opened his eyes and frowned. "What?" he asked incredulously. "Why would they think you're crazy? I mean, yeah, you are, but you know what I mean-" He cut off, his gaze shifting to the door, and only then Mac heard a sound of footsteps outside. He wasn't surprised Jack had heard that first and he didn't miss the way Jack tensed, reaching for the gun again.

"It's probably the others," Mac whispered, forcing himself to take his hand away. "But yeah, better safe than sorry."

They both got to their feet and Mac made a sound of protest when Jack shoved him behind himself, gun pointed at the door. At that moment it flew, propelled by Desi's boot, and she barreled through it along with Riley. "Mac! Are you-" Desi started, and then her eyes got huge. " _Jack_?"

Jack lowered his gun, but before he could say anything Riley let out a loud sob and pushed past Desi... punching Jack's shoulder when she reached him, hard considering the yelp he let out. The next thing Riley did was throw herself at him, arms wrapped around his neck, and Jack made a choked sound, blindly handing Mac the gun before he hugged her back.

Mac couldn't help but grin as he watched their reunion, holding Jack's gun down along his leg. He met Desi's eyes and was startled when he saw tears in them, but it made sense - Jack was obviously special to her too, even if she was evasive about sharing how.

The door opened again and Russ and James stumbled through it, both looking relieved when they spotted Mac. "There you are!" Russ exclaimed. "What the hell were you thinking, running away like that?"

Jack's head snapped up when he heard a voice that didn't belong in their little group - according to him because he had been gone for so long - and Mac barely stifled a chuckle when Jack's eyes narrowed. "I'm either seein' things, or that's Russ Taylor from Spearhead Operations," he said slowly, his voice dropping to that low, dangerous rumble that Mac secretly loved. "Mac?"

"Jack, it's okay," Mac said, reaching out with his free hand to touch Jack's arm. "He's a friend."

"Oh, Angus, that's lovely," Russ teased, grinning when Mac rolled his eyes. "But I really am, Jack. And I'm happy to see you're alive."

"So am I," James added, shutting and locking the door. "But I have to ask - how safe are we here?"

Riley was still clinging to Jack, her face buried in his neck, but Mac didn't blame her. "As safe as we can be, I guess," Jack replied, sliding one hand into Riley's head. "I covered my tracks, so unless you were followed we should be good."

"We... we tried not to be, but it wasn't that easy," Desi said, and Mac was shocked by the raw emotion in her voice. "It's a long story."

Jack's expression softened, and he held out his free arm. "C'mere, Dez."

Desi's face crumpled and she hugged him tightly, not seeming to care that she was sharing the embrace with Riley. "You fucking asshole," she choked out, also handing her gun to Mac. "We thought you were _dead_."

"I know," Jack said, his voice cracking. "I know, and... I'm so sorry about this. I really am." Mac couldn't help but get emotional all over again as he watched the scene in front of him, even if he felt a little weird holding not one, but two guns. "And I'm gonna explain everything, I swear. Just... don't hit me anymore?"

The request was almost pleading and it made them all laugh, any remaining sadness or tension bleeding away. "Before we do anything else, we need to call Matty and Bozer," Riley declared, sniffling as she finally stepped back and wiped her eyes. "They'll be pissed if we don't let them see you for themselves."

"Yeah, yeah, good idea," Jack said, clearing his throat. "Although I suspect Matty is plenty pissed already. She's gonna yell at me, ain't she?"

"Definitely," Mac confirmed, unable to stop smiling. "But before _that_ happens we should turn off those flashing lights. Here and at those two other locations."

"Already done," James said, waving him off. "We did that when we realized those places where empty. Just turn off the ones here."

Russ waved them off too, but in a more British fashion. "Call Matty, I'll take care of it."

"Somebody wanna tell me what's going on with Taylor?" Jack asked as Riley pulled out her rig and set up her secure Wi-Fi hotspot. "Because I'm confused as hell."

"Russ owns the Phoenix now," Mac said, ignoring the indignant noise Jack made and handing him and Desi their guns. "Again, it's a long story, but the short version is that we lost our government funding and he bought us out."

Jack stared at him like Mac had suddenly grown a second head. "What? You know what, you'll tell me later."

"Can we turn on the lights now?" James asked, glancing around the dark room they had chosen to set up in. "Otherwise all Matty and Bozer are going to see is darkness."

"Yeah, go ahead," Jack told him. "It was easier for me to hide in the dark, especially with the decoy lights."

Russ hit the light switch and they all squinted for a moment at the brightness. All the curtains were drawn save for the ones at the window where the Morse code had been coming from, so James quickly pulled those shut as well.

Now that Mac got a look at Jack in the light he had to suppress the urge to cry again, because it was just more proof that this was _real_ and not some kind of twisted dream. It was also visible now how... tired Jack looked. Even though he seemed even more ripped than before he had left (his chest and arms were enough to make Mac's mouth water), somehow he was also thinner, dark circles under his eyes betraying his exhaustion. Mac also suspected he might have had some minor injuries from the explosion, but he decided to talk to Jack about that later when they were alone.

"Okay, calling Matty now," Riley said, smiling weakly as she glanced at Jack. "You ready?"

"As I'll ever be," Jack replied, and they all sat down on the couch, shrugging off their warm jackets and crowding together with Jack in the middle. "Let's do it."

Matty picked up the call as soon as Riley put it through, and she and Bozer both looked relieved and overjoyed. "Jack," Matty said, and to Mac's shock she actually sounded choked up. "It is _so_ good to see you."

"Yeah? Likewise, boss lady," Jack replied, his voice cracking a little. "Also, I suspect you'd like to hit me too, so I'm kinda glad we're doin' this through the computer."

"If you think that's going to save you then you're mistaken," Matty replied, still smiling. Her gaze shifted to Mac. "I take it you managed to find him without major problems? Or surprise visitors?"

"So far, but I don't want to jinx it," Mac said, unable to stop himself from leaning into Jack's side. "We'll probably stay here for the night... but now we need to figure out what we're doing in the morning."

"Pretty sure I know the answer," Bozer commented, looking at Jack after quickly swiping the tears from his eyes. "You're hunting Jonah Walsh, right?"

Jack took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I'm not surprised you guys figured that out," he said, glancing at Mac and smiling. "I hoped you would after finding Kelvin. How is he, by the way?"

Mac's heart dropped because he realized Jack must have hidden the phone or arranged for it to be hidden right after his "death". "Kelvin's dead," he replied quietly. "He'd been dead for a few hours when we found him."

Jack closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Dammit," he whispered, then, louder, "Walsh must've gotten to him. I told him to skip town, that it wouldn't be safe."

"He didn't leave soon enough," Desi said solemnly. "We found his phone - Walsh sent somebody to his house, and from what we found he probably gave him a choice."

"Help make KX7 or die," James murmured, looking distraught. "And they killed him."

Mac opened his mouth, but then something occurred to him and he immediately internally cursed himself for being so stupid. "Oh my god," he breathed out. "We're idiots, dad." Everybody including James looked at him questioningly, and Mac sighed. "Those people who followed me and Riley, and later that SUV in Caribou... I know why they weren't shooting to kill." He met his dad's gaze. "Walsh is looking for people that can help with KX7... and we're both on that list."

Realization dawned on James's face and he shook his head. "You're right, we _are_ idiots. Of course Walsh would come after us - you especially, since he knows he could use you to get to me."

"The question now is, how do we find Walsh?" Riley wondered, looking at Jack. "If he's a part of the Kovacs network he could be anywhere."

"He's most likely in Germany," Jack replied, smiling a little when everyone blinked at him in shock. "What? That's why I died." He used air quotes. "So that I could keep looking for Walsh under the radar. I'm pretty sure his base of operations is in Germany." In that moment Desi yawned, followed by Russ. "But I guess we could discuss all that in the morning," Jack said, sounding amused. "Y'all seem tired."

"I don't even know what day it is," Mac commented, shrugging a little. "It was night when I had my big epiphany, then we got to Caribou... and then we flew here and it's night again thanks to the time difference."

"Jack is right, you all need to get some rest," Matty said, back to being the boss once more. "And since it looks like he rented the fanciest villa at Lake Como, you shouldn't have a problem finding beds. We'll talk again soon."

She disconnected the call and they all sat back, Riley closing her laptop. "Okay, there's three bedrooms plus the couch," Jack declared, slapping his thighs before he got to his feet. "I'm in the room at the end of the hall and I don't mind sharing."

"That's sweet of you to offer, Jack, I'll get my bag," James said sweetly, causing everyone to laugh. "We should get our bags actually. And ditch the car."

"Come on, let's do it now." Russ also got up. "I can take the couch, it's fine."

"Okay, then James gets one room, and we could share the other one, Dez?" Riley asked, and when Desi nodded Riley looked at Mac, smiling a little. "I guess that leaves you with Jack."

Mac fought the urge to stick his tongue out at her when he saw the knowing look in her eyes. "Sure, that's fine. Right, Jack?"

"Absolutely," Jack said, maybe just a touch too quickly. He cleared his throat. "If you guys are hungry there's some stuff in the kitchen. I ain't made a food run in a while so it's not much, but it'd tide you over until we leave tomorrow."

"Awesome," Desi said, and then she looked at Russ and James. "You need help with the bags?"

"We've got it, no worries," Russ replied, waving her off again. "We'll be right back."

They headed for the door and walked outside while Riley and Desi went to the kitchen, leaving Mac alone with Jack in the living room. "You good, hoss?" Jack asked, not looking convinced when Mac nodded. "Come on, I'll show you the bedroom."

Mac got up on slightly shaky legs, but by the time he followed Jack down the hall to his room they were stable again. "This is nice," he commented when he sees the king sized bed and the attached bathroom. "How long have you been here?"

"Not long," Jack replied, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "But I figured you guys might be joining me, so I splurged."

"Good thinking," Mac said, looking around curiously. "Plus if anyone was looking for you they would assume you rented a tiny hole for just yourself."

"Exactly." Jack smiled, and Mac suddenly realized he was out of practice when it came to hiding his feelings, his stomach swooping. "Speaking of holes... what was that about my Cobra and bullet holes?"

Mac huffed a laugh and sat down next to Jack, close enough that their knees brush, and his stomach swooped again when Jack didn't pull away. "Riley and I got chased while we were leaving your dad's grave," he said, swallowing hard when he pictured that empty hole and the headstone next to Senior's resting place. "The back windshield is shattered and the rear end took some damage... I'll pay to fix it, if you want."

"Hell yeah, we're fixin' it!" Jack exclaimed, nudging Mac's shoulder with his own. "But I can pay for it myself, it's fine. It _is_ because of me that you were at that cemetery after all." He raised one eyebrow. "Your own fault for gettin' chased, though, since it's your genius brain Walsh is after."

Mac laughed again. "Fair enough," he said, smiling a little. "You do know that the Cobra is technically mine now, right?"

Jack groaned. "Fuck, I forgot about that. And the GTO belongs to Riley."

"Yep," Mac said, his smile turning into a grin. "Don't worry, I'm sure we can work out a custody agreement." He took a moment to just... _look_ at Jack, his chest aching... and as terrifying as it was, he thought he needed to tell him the truth. It was what he had wished he could have done when he had thought he was dead, after all.

"Mac? You okay?" Jack asked, a concerned look on his face, and Mac's heart stuttered because of course Jack had noticed something was up with him.

"I am, yeah," Mac replied, swallowing hard. "I just... I need to talk to you-"

"Angus?" his dad's voice made him jump, and when he looked at the door he saw James's head peeking inside. "I've got your bag."

"Thanks, dad," Mac said, smiling faintly when James put his suitcase next to Jack's duffle bag - the same one he had when he had left three years ago. "You gonna turn in?"

"Think so, yeah," James said, smiling back. "Just gotta take my meds and then I'll hit the sack." He looked at Jack. "I really am glad you're okay, Dalton."

"That's... I appreciate it, man," Jack replied after a small delay, and it was adorable how shocked he sounded. "You takin' meds? Are _you_ okay?"

James glanced at Mac before looking at Jack again. "I am now," he said. "That's the short answer to a long story. I'm sure Angus is going to tell you." He stepped out of the room, reaching for the door to close it behind him. "Goodnight, guys."

Before Jack could ask him, Mac sighed and explained, "My dad had cancer twice, and then we almost died in an explosion. He's in remission now and all the burns have healed, but he's still got a pretty intense med regimen."

"Holy shit," Jack said, letting out a low whistle. "That's... a lot to deal with. For both of you."

"Yeah," Mac said quietly. "It's... been a rough couple of years. A lot of things happened."

He swallowed hard, wringing his fingers and trying to decide what to do about telling Jack the truth. Before he could say anything, though, Jack pushed something into his hands... and when Mac looked down he saw it was a paperclip.

"You're gonna break your fingers," Jack said softly. "You... said you needed to talk about something. Before your dad came in?"

Mac's eyes burned and he ducked his head, taking the paperclip with a mumbled thank you and starting to bend it. "Um... yeah, I did," he said, stumbling over his words more than he would like. "I've, uh, had a lot of time to think... you know, since you left, but also since I thought you were dead... and there's something I need to tell you." He took in a shaking breath. "But you might not want me to sleep in here once I do."

"I can't imagine anything you could tell me that would make that happen," Jack said, sounding absolutely sure. "I mean it, Mac. I... I know I've been gone for a long time, but... you can still tell me anything." Jack's voice was soft and comforting, and it made it even harder for Mac to keep it together, but he tried.

"I'm... I..." he started, making a frustrated sound when the words didn't come out. He took a deep breath and tried again. "I... I love y-you."

There was a pause, and then Jack replied, "I love you too, hoss, you know that."

Instantly Mac shook his head, crumpling the paperclip between his fingers. "No, Jack, I don't mean... not like we're friends. Like I _love_ you. Like I stole your clothes and dreamt about you, and couldn't make my fucking relationship work because the only person I ever wanted to be with was you... except I couldn't."

He didn't get a response - in fact, it seemed like Jack wasn't even breathing, and Mac barely stifled a pained sound. His hands started trembling, but he managed to finish bending the paperclip and he dropped it on the floor, belatedly realizing he had shaped it like a broken heart.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, barely holding back the tears. "I'm really sorry, I didn't... I didn't mean for that to happen, but you... you stayed." He sniffled. "You chose m-me, back in the Sandbox. That's all it took." He stood up, his legs shaking. "I'll go, I can... crash with my dad or something."

Jack made a sound Mac couldn't identify, but the next thing he knew there were hands on his waist, tugging him downward. He yelped as he wound up in Jack's lap, his hand sliding up Mac's spine and into his hair - and then he was being kissed. It was a desperate gesture, off-center and messy, but it blew Mac's mind all the same.

He kissed back because of course he did, even if he didn't understand what was going on right now. He slid his arms around Jack's neck and made a soft sound when Jack's tongue slipped into his mouth, the kiss getting deeper and growing even more desperate. Mac didn't mind, though, because this was his dream coming true... so even though he _still_ didn't understand, he didn't pull back.

Eventually breathing became an issue and Jack broke away, nuzzling at Mac's cheek and panting. It sounded like he was having a hard time drawing in air, which wasn't good, but Mac was too dumbstruck to bring it up. "You can... have me," Jack wheezed, holding Mac tightly, but yet so carefully, like he was something precious. "Because I love you too."

Mac pulled back enough to look into Jack's eyes, trying to say something, but it seemed his brain had shut down. "You... you do?" he eventually asked, absently wondering if this was a dream... or a nightmare, because if this wasn't true then it was just cruel. "But I... why?"

"I told you why in that voicemail," Jack whispered, thumb rubbing over the vulnerable spot where Mac's skull met his neck. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Angus MacGyver." He kissed the corner of his mouth. "And I know I don't come close to deserving you, but... but I'd be the happiest bastard in the world if you gave me a chance."

Mac felt his eyes burn again, so he squeezed them shut, but a moment later a tear slid down his cheek anyway. "Of course I'll give you a chance," he said, swallowing down a sob and pressing their foreheads together. "I've been dreaming about this for years." He exhaled slowly, trying to get himself together. "And for the record, you deserve everything. Much more than I could ever give you."

"Oh, darlin', you've got such a big brain and yet you're so wrong," Jack told him, chuckling weakly. His hand came around to cup Mac's jaw, his thumb wiping away the tear. "You're my whole damn world." He kissed his lips again. "I... I never thought... you're so amazing, I didn't figure you'd ever look twice at an old spook like me."

Mac blinked at Jack, leaning into his touch. "You're the amazing one," he replied, aware he probably could have been more eloquent, but for now he was just glad his brain was coming up with any words. "And you're all I've wanted for so many years now, that's why... I'm having such a hard time believing this is real."

"It's real," Jack murmured, lips brushing his chin, then his jaw. "The only reason I know that is because my heart's about to beat clean outta my chest. I never, ever thought you'd wanna be sitting in my lap, or want me touching you like this." He pushed his face into Mac's throat and breathed in deeply. "God, you always smell so _good_."

Mac chuckled a little when he heard that, hugging Jack close and pressing his lips to his temple. "You're one to talk," he murmured, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "You smell like leather and gunpowder, you know? After you left your clothes still smelled like you for a while, so I... cuddled them, or wore them to sleep." He chewed on his lower lip. "When I was alone, I mean."

"Ozone and sunshine," Jack said, lips moving against the birthmark near the hinge of Mac's jaw, the one that he had always been self-conscious about. "You smell like ozone and sunshine, and it's addictive." His hand slid down to grip Mac's thigh, hitching him just a little bit closer. "What do you mean, when you were alone? Who were you with?"

Mac swallowed and pulled back a little because he couldn't focus with Jack's lips on his skin. He didn't meet his gaze, though, staring at the collar of Jack's shirt instead, fiddling with it lightly. "I... it was Desi," he admitted quietly, hoping like hell that this wasn't something that would make Jack change his mind about them. "That's the relationship I mentioned earlier, one I couldn't make work."

Jack hummed. "I figured it might've been her," he said, dropping his head to kiss Mac's knuckles, since they were right below his chin. "You guys okay now?"

"Yeah, I think so," Mac replied, and he found he actually meant it. "We've broken up and made up three times now, but I... I think we're good." His breath hitched when Jack's fingertips found the hem of his shirt, brushing against bare skin. "We actually talked this time, so that helps."

"Sounds like a longer story," Jack murmured, leaning in again and pressing his lips against Mac's throat. "Another one, actually. You'll have to get me all caught up."

"That's... that's fine," Mac replied, his voice stuttering when Jack's teeth scraped over his pulse point. "So you're not... mad about that? Me and Desi?"

"Mad?" Jack pulled back to look him in the eye, frowning. "Why would I be mad? I was gone for three years and we're both idiots who couldn't talk about our feelings before I had to leave." He stroked a hand through Mac's hair, fingers brushing his ear. "You're entitled to be with whoever you want. And now that's me..." A giddy chuckle. "Which I can hardly believe."

"You and me both," Mac said, smiling widely because no matter how surreal this felt, he was pretty sure it was real now. He leaned in for another kiss, closing his eyes and enjoying how Jack's lips felt against his... at least until he heard Jack's breathing hitch again, reminding him of his earlier observation. "Are you okay?" he asked softly. "Your breathing is... off sometimes."

"I know," Jack responded, sighing a little. "Think I caught too much smoke after the blast. I managed to weasel my way into a clinic in Bosnia Herzegovina, they gave me an inhaler and said it would clear up in a couple weeks." He squeezed Mac's waist. "Other than that I'm kinda banged up, but I'm good. Promise."

Mac smiled, touching Jack's cheek with his fingertips and brushing them over his stubble. "You seem tired, though," he murmured, moving his hand up and rubbing his thumb over the soft skin under Jack's eye. "Those bags under your eyes look like they need their own luggage tags. But I imagine that's from running and looking over your shoulder all the time lately."

"You'd be right about that," Jack said, tilting his head into Mac's hand and looking at him through his lashes. "But maybe I can do a little less of that now that you and the others are here." He made a face. "Even Taylor, as much as that pains me to say." He kissed Mac's palm. "You want a shower? Or food?"

Even though he could have probably used a shower after so many hours spent on the plane and all the running around, Mac shook his head. "No, I'm... I'm good," he murmured, mesmerized by how beautiful Jack's eyes were. "I just want to-" His stomach growling cut him off, and he ducked his head, cheeks burning. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I ate on the plane, but that was a while ago."

"Hang on, I'll get you somethin'," Jack said, sliding Mac off his lap and back on the bed, every touch lingering like he didn't want to let go. When Mac tried to protest he got Jack's trigger finger put to his lips. "Shush. Why don't you change into some more comfortable clothes, huh? Be right back." He slipped out of the room and Mac's whole body just... deflated, the tension he had been carrying around with him finally bleeding away.

He exhaled shakily and leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. He had been so tired for the last few days, between mourning Jack and taking down Kovacs, but even though he had gone through another emotional rollercoaster after trying to prove Jack was alive, he was wide awake now. He suspected it was the adrenaline keeping him going, but whatever it was he was thankful for it - he wanted to spend as much time as possible before they got back to work, especially considering the new development in their relationship.

He sat like this for a moment longer and then forced himself to get up, walking up to his suitcase. After searching around he located a pair of sweatpants and Jack's t-shirt he had been wearing before he had put on warmer clothes in Caribou, and he changed quickly before going back to the bed, sitting cross-legged on the mattress and waiting for Jack.

If he listened hard he heard Jack talking to someone out in the kitchen - Desi, maybe - and then his footsteps approached the bedroom. "Okay, we've got stuff that's less like a sandwich and more like a charcuterie board, but it'll do," Jack declared, coming in with a large plate and kicking the door shut behind him. He also had a couple bottles of water, and he put those on the nightstand and the plate on the mattress, careful not to jostle it as he crawled back on the bed.

"Sounds good," Mac said, grabbing a piece of cheese and popping it in his mouth. "I'm hungry enough that I'd eat anything."

Jack grinned at him, reaching for the water, and then his gaze shifted lower, his grin widening when he saw what Mac was wearing. "You weren't kidding about stealing my shirts, huh," he commented, taking a sip of the water. "You look cute."

Mac felt his cheeks flush. "Shut up," he mutters, eating some salami next. "Believe it or not, I didn't plan this." He cleared his throat. "Besides, you look... like a ripped lumberjack."

Jack barked out a laugh. "Is that a good thing?" he asked, a note of teasing in his voice as he leaned back against the headboard. "Do you want me to flex so you can get a better look?"

"I mean, I wouldn't say no to that," Mac teased right back, amazed by how... easy this was. "I had no idea it was possible for you to get more ripped, but yet you somehow managed."

"Yeah, runnin' around a lot will do that to you," Jack replied, shrugging a little. He tilted his head as he looked at Mac, something thoughtful in his eyes. "Why were you worried the others would think you're crazy? When you realized I might've faked the whole thing?"

Mac sighed. "In order for that to make sense, I have to tell you about Codex... and my aunt." He ignored Jack's shocked expression and did exactly that, rehashing everything that went down. "So anyway, I was afraid that the others might doubt me like they did when I said I wasn't compromised. Except Riley, I mean."

Jack was quiet for a moment, clearly processing everything. "Are you seriously expecting me _not_ to go back there and punch Taylor right now?" he asked, and that was... not what Mac had expected, even though he probably should have. "Look, Mac, this is the first time I'm meeting the bastard in person, but I told you all about him. Are you sure he's not playing some kind of game?"

"I'm sure," Mac said immediately. He shifted a little closer to Jack, trying to think of a way to explain it. "Look... Russ is far from perfect, but when we found out you were leaving me clues - both times - he dropped everything to help, even though he never met you. We've had our disagreements, but he's my friend." He smiled. "Don't tell him I said that, though, I'll never hear the end of it."

"Your secret's safe with me," Jack said, smiling a little. "And if you trust him... then I guess I do too." His smile faded away a moment later. "I'm sorry about your aunt, though. I wish you'd had more time with her." He sighed. "Also I'm sorry for... dying the way I did. It must've been even more awful considering what happened to Gwen."

"Yeah," Mac murmured because he had wondered if the universe was planning to kill all of his friends and family in explosions. "Can you... tell me what happened? When you decided to go through with it and... how?"

Jack started nibbling at the food too. "I knew I couldn't trust anybody around me, not completely," he started, and those words were enough to make Mac hurt deep inside - he couldn't imagine how horrible it must have been for Jack to realize he was all alone. "But I also knew that I was getting closer to _something_ important and I couldn't stop. Once I figured out Kovacs was a group and not just the guy I shot way back... that's when I knew I needed a contingency plan, because I figured the mole would try to kill me."

"That raid... that was real, right?" Mac asked, grabbing a bottle of water for himself. "I mean, Walker said you saved the hostages that were being used as a human shield."

"Yeah, only he still thought Kovacs was one dude in charge," Jack replied, eating a piece of salami. "I didn't tell anyone about my suspicions. But the fact that someone kidnapped all those people was very much real."

"Okay... so you decided to do something crazy and you went in by yourself," Mac said, smiling weakly. "Did you know who was the mole then? Wait, do you know now? Because I can tell you."

Jack smiled back at him, but it wasn't a happy expression. "Agent Vitez was the mole, wasn't she?" When Mac nodded, he sighed. "I wish I could say I'm surprised, but I'm really not. She was almost too helpful, you know? Too eager to get Kovacs. Anyway, I started keeping a bag of my hair on me like a crazy person, refreshing it every few days so the DNA would stay viable... and I stamped the S into my dog tags to match my old man's grave. I buried the USB stick there before I left with the video of the files, but the cell phone I shipped to an old army buddy after the explosion, once I'd gotten in touch with Kelvin and warned him about Walsh. Had my guy bury it outside Kelvin's house, no questions asked." He ate some cheese. "Now you're gonna ask me how I knew Walsh was part of Kovacs."

"I... was going to ask that, yeah," Mac said with a smile. "I'm also very impressed with all your back-up plans, but we'll get to that later."

Jack smiled back, snatching a piece of ham out of Mac's hand. "Remember those files I filmed? When I was going through them for the first time I was shocked that a man who worked with your old man was in there. It immediately made me think of Walsh, but back then I was focused just on Kovacs, I didn't even think Walsh could be involved.”

"But you were never able to find Walsh before," Mac pointed out. "So it must've occurred to you that the reason for that might be he was hiding out with a group."

"Exactly," Jack said, nodding. "Once fake me died, I was able to do some more digging... and then I contacted Kelvin. At first I was gonna pretend to be interested in KX7, but then I decided to tell him the truth... and he cracked like an egg. Said he knew Walsh was in some kinda club for terrorists because the bastard had been hounding him for years now about joining up."

"Only now that Vitez was gone there was an opening for Walsh to take over... and he got tired of Kelvin rejecting him over and over again," Mac said slowly, all of the puzzle pieces coming together. "So Walsh had him killed, because if Kelvin wasn't going to help he didn't want him to babble and tell someone about the group."

"Exactly." Jack drained the last of his water. "And like I told the others earlier, Walsh's base of operations is somewhere in Germany. I needed to lay low in a place where you'd find me, though, so I decided to come here. Figured it was close enough that I could monitor his activity, but far enough that he wouldn't suspect it's me keeping an eye on him." He sighed again. "Although that doesn't matter, since he's clearly after you and your old man. Again."

"That's not your fault, Jack," Mac said slowly because it sounded like Jack was blaming himself for that. "As far as we know he has no idea about you, and he's going after us to finally finish the KX7." He reached for Jack's hand, his mind still blown that he was allowed to do that. "That's not on you."

Jack picked up Mac's hand and kissed the back of it, and _oh_ , that made Mac's heart beat double time. "I'm just glad you're here," he murmured, taking the empty plate and putting it aside. "Telling you that I missed you doesn't seem like enough to describe how I felt. And I'm happy the rest of the gang came along too. Maybe now we'll be able to take Walsh down."

"Maybe," Mac echoed, trying not to think about everything he wanted to do to Jack right now. "It's all thanks to you, though." He smiled, remembering what he had said when he had lied in his dark bedroom, talking to his ceiling. "All those clues that helped us take down Vitez? They were so clever, Jack."

Jack shrugged modestly, still holding Mac's hand in his own, dropping them down to his thigh. "I tried my best. I wanted you to be able to figure them out, not somebody else. Guess it worked."

"You can say that again." Mac scooted closer again, so their legs were touching. "I think you cheated a little, though. You used the manniversary for two clues, not one."

"I was really proud of that one," Jack said with a grin. "A little worried too, I wasn't sure if you'd get it."

"I almost didn't," Mac admitted. "I mean, I figured out Kovacs was a group, but... the second realization came to me when we were already home."

"You kept thinking about the mission, didn't you?" Jack asked teasingly, squeezing his hand. "Taking it apart, like you always do?"

Mac nodded and ducked his head. "Yeah. In order to get through it without breaking down, I had to put everything about you aside as best I could and focus like it was any other job." He glanced over at his purpled knuckles where they sat against Jack's. "Clearly that only went so far. I'm pretty sure Russ is going to need to replace the sink in his jet."

Jack frowned and glanced at his hand, realization dawning on his face. "You punched the sink?" he asked softly, sighing when Mac nodded. "You okay? You didn't break anything, right?"

"No, just the sink," Mac murmured, chewing on his lower lip. "I was so focused on the mission, and... on comforting Riley that I had to push it all down."

"Oh, Mac," Jack whispered, drawing him closer and kissing his cheek. "You don't always gotta be the strong one, you know."

"It feels like I do," Mac admitted, allowing himself to be folded up in Jack's strong arms. "Not that the others aren't, but... I could never open up to them like I do with you. And I thought I'd never get to do that again."

"What about Desi?" Jack asked, kissing Mac's temple. "You said you broke up three times, so it sounds like things had been goin' for a while."

"Uh, yeah, I guess," Mac muttered, curling up against Jack's side and resting his head on his shoulder, just like he had always dreamed. "We started dating right after the Phoenix got disbanded, we broke up a few months later. Then we got together for a while after Russ bought the Phoenix, then things kind of ended during the Codex disaster, but we picked up where we left off after the pandemic... and yesterday we broke up again." He sighed, realizing how messed up this was. "The thing is, we were never good at talking."

"Mhmm, I guess I can understand that," Jack said, his hand rubbing up and down Mac's side almost hypnotically. "Dez isn't real good at sharing and neither are you. Bet there was more rolling around in bed than anything else, right?"

Mac choked a little, but nodded. "Yeah, um... that could've been part of our communication issue."

"Knew it," Jack murmured, a smile audible in his voice. Mac was amazed by how Jack didn't seem to be bothered at all by the topic of the conversation... but there were no reasons for him to be, and he probably knew it. "Then again, can't say I blame her. You're very hard to resist."

Mac found that hard to believe, but he played along. "Oh yeah? Why's that?"

Jack chuckled low in his throat, the sound rumbling into Mac's ear, and the hand on his side dropped lower, squeezing his hip. "So many reasons. You're gorgeous, for one, but that isn't the only thing that makes you attractive."

Mac felt his cheeks burn, and he couldn't help but shudder a little when he imagined Jack's big hand touching him somewhere else. "I wouldn't call myself gorgeous, but I guess you're entitled to your own opinion," he said, somehow keeping his voice steady. "So... what are the other things?"

"Hmm, where should I start," Jack murmured in his ear. "You're so damn smart, so funny when you let yourself be... the list is long."

"It sounds like you've thought about this a lot," Mac observed, drawing in a sharp breath when that hand moved just a little more, putting light pressure against his ass. "Do you have it all written down somewhere?"

"Aw, come on now, don't get cocky," Jack drawled, teeth scraping soft skin. "Just because you mean the world to me doesn't mean I turn every piece of paper I see into a Hallmark card."

"It doesn't?" Mac asked, tilting his head up to look at Jack and pouting. "Now I'm disappointed."

Jack huffed in amusement, watching him with those beautiful eyes that Mac had missed so much... that were now darker than they had been before. "Are you now?" he asked, smirking a little. "Anything I could do to make it up to you?"

Mac chewed on his lower lip for a moment. "You could kiss me?"

He couldn't help but gasp when Jack darted forward and did exactly that, pressing their mouths together insistently. "There, I kissed you," he declared, pulling away a second later and grinning. "Any better? Or do I need to do something else?"

Mac pretended to think about it. "A little better, yeah. But I think I need you to do it again." Chuckling, Jack leaned in for another kiss, but when he tried to pull back a moment later Mac didn't let him, wrapping his arms around his neck. "Not so fast, cowboy," he mumbled against his lips, shifting until he was lying on his back, tugging Jack on top of him. "I like kissing you."

Jack groaned, sliding an arm underneath Mac's lower back, his other forearm braced on the mattress. "I like kissing you too, sweetheart," he rumbled out, settling more of his weight against Mac. Contrary to his words he broke away from Mac's lips to nip at his jaw. "Actually, scratch that. I like doing everything with you."

Mac did his best not to turn into a moaning mess, but Jack's weight on top of him felt _amazing_. "But... you haven't done anything with me yet," he said breathlessly, rubbing Jack's back up and down. "We barely even kissed."

"I meant in general, darlin'," Jack murmured against his skin, pulling back a moment later to look at Mac. "But I can already tell you I'm gonna love anything we do end up doin' tonight. Even if that's just sleeping."

Mac blinked up at him. "Are you tired? Because I was... until I realized that this is probably the only time we'll get to spend alone for a while."

"Mhmm, that's a good point." Jack brushed the hair back from Mac's face, thumb rubbing over his cheekbone. "So... if we were to do something... what would you want it to be?"

"Anything," Mac blurted out, his cheeks turning pink immediately. "I mean... I just want to be with you, Jack." He licked his lips, choosing not to mention he had imagined every possible scenario of them sleeping together. "Whatever you wanna do is fine with me."

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment if you liked the fic ♥


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